[Effects of Restored Blood Flow on the Contractile Function of the Right Ventricle in Patients with Acute Myocardial Infarct: Data of Two-dimensional Computerized Echocardiography]

The volumes of the right and left ventricles were measured in 78 patients with first acute transmural myocardial infarction at days 1, 3, 7, 14, and 28 of the disease. Thirty four patients were diagnosed as having anterior myocardial infarction, 35 presented with inferior myocardial infarction, and 9 had a concurrent right and left ventricular inferior wall myocardial infarction. A high incidence of right ventricular dysfunction was confirmed both in anterior and inferior myocardial infarction. The most profound right ventricular contractile dysfunctions were detected in patients with proximal right coronary occlusion in the absence of reperfusion. Successful thrombolytic therapy for myocardial infarction was found to affect right ventricular function to a lesser extent than left function.