Do myocardial perfusion patterns (TIMI grades and MCE no reflow) predict functional outcomes after coronary angioplasty in patients with acute anterior wall myocardial infarction?
MCE no-reflow detection provides important prognostic information for functional outcomes in acute anterior MI patients after angioplasty, even when TIMI 3 flow is achieved.
Despite no obstructive lesion of the vessel, TIMI 2 is caused by advanced microvascular damage and is a highly specific, although not sensitive, predictor of poor functional outcomes in patients with acute myocardial infarction. TIMI 3 does not necessarily indicate myocardial salvage, and detection of MCE no reflow in these patients is particularly useful for the prediction of functional outcome.
Ito et al. (1996) studied this question.