Heart Attack Patients Benefit from Bone Marrow Stem Cells

Each year in the United States, roughly 1 million people experience a heart attack. Of these 1 million occurrences, about 20 percent are serious enough to cause damage to the ventricles of the heart. Heart attack survivors are generally given mediation to treat any damage, however, recent research has found that injecting heart attack patients with their own bone marrow stem cells significantly improves heart function and can reduce long-term complications. All of the 31 study participants were treated with angioplasty and stents to open up the blocked artery. Within one week of their heart attacks, 16 had differing numbers of bone marrow stem cells infused into the artery where the blockage occurred. Those that received bone marrow stem cells were either given 5 million, 10 million or 15 million cells that had started to become endothelial cells, which line blood vessels. The other 15 study participants were treated with the standard medications that are given after a heart attack. When compared with patients treated only with drugs and those that received lower doses of stem cells, patients that received higher doses of stem cells saw the most improvement in the heart’s blood flow. Researchers also learned that study participants that received bone marrow stem cells also saw a reduction in long-term complications after following them for up to 5 years. Those participants also experienced fewer episodes of chest pain and could walk longer distances without pain.

The positive results of this study have prompted researchers to begin thinking about larger trials with bone marrow stem cell use in heart attack patients in the near future. More positive results may allow this method to be used to treat patients with damaged ventricles as a result of a heart attack. As with any new treatment, medication or surgery, there is always an increased risk that something could go wrong. If you or a loved one was injured by hospital medical malpractice in the New York area, call or e-mail the malpractice attorneys at Silberstein, Awad & Miklos, P.C. Our experienced attorneys serve clients with Bronx medical malpractice, Brooklyn medical malpractice, Queens medical malpractice, Nassau medical malpractice and Suffolk medical malpractice cases.

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