Impact of Stress Hyperglycemia on Myocardial Salvage Following Successfully Recanalized Primary Acute Myocardial Infarction

BACKGROUND: Elevated blood glucose on admission may worsen outcome after acute myocardial infarction (AMI). No relationship has been identified between admission blood glucose level and myocardial salvage in patients with AMI. METHODS AND RESULTS: This study assessed 150 consecutive patients with a first AMI who underwent percutaneous coronary intervention within 24 h from onset of symptoms. Plasma blood glucose was measured on admission. Stress hyperglycemia was defined as blood glucose ≥10 mmol/L (180 mg/dl). The extent of myocardial salvage 7 days after AMI was evaluated on cardiovascular magnetic resonance imaging (CMRI) as the difference between areas of myocardium at risk (T2-weighted hyperintense lesion) and areas of late gadolinium enhancement. The association between stress hyperglycemia and myocardial salvage index (MSI) was investigated in patients with and without diabetes. Among non-diabetic patients, MSI was lower in those with stress hyperglycemia than in those without. No significant difference in MSI was noted between diabetes patients with or without stress hyperglycemia. On multivariate analysis, stress hyperglycemia in patients without diabetes was an independent predictor of MSI. CONCLUSIONS: Stress hyperglycemia affects MSI, indicating that the manipulation of glucose levels could be a potential therapeutic target for salvaging ischemic damage.