Scientists find a solution for heart failure patients
Aug 11, 2003
Failing hearts can be rejuvenated by injections of stem cells from patients’ own bone marrow, scientists say
Failing hearts can be rejuvenated by injections of stem cells from patients’ own bone marrow, scientists say. Doctors found that the technique transformed the health of 13 people desperately ill with end-stage heart failure.
Heart failure occurs when a damaged heart cannot pump enough blood to serve the body’s needs. It often happens after heart attacks, and can mean a long death sentence. About a million people in Britain are thought to be suffering from heart failure.
The new treatment involves taking stem cells from an individual’s bone marrow and injecting them into the heart.
Stem cells are unprogrammed blank slates that can become different kinds of cell. Animal studies have shown that certain stem cells from the bone marrow can turn into heart muscle.
Stem cell transplants in animals have improved heart function and blood flow. Researchers from the United States and Brazil conducted a trial to see if the same results could be repeated in patients. A total of 14 Brazilians with heart failure received an average of 15 injections containing about two million stem cells each. Seven other patients served as a comparison, or control group.
Dr James Willerson, president of the University of Texas Health Science Centre, whose team took part in the study, said, “These patients were desperately ill. They had a relatively high risk of dying, and had no other forms of therapy available because their heart failure was so severe.â€
After two months, the treated patients had significantly less heart failure and angina, and were more able to pump blood than the untreated patients. The treated group also did better on treadmill tests. After four months, they were showing a sustained improvement in pumping power and the ability to supply blood to the body.
‘Rapid track’ results from the study were published in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association. The scientists said it was unclear why the patients showed such improvement. None of the treated patients had serious problems such as sustained irregular heart rhythms or heart attacks during or soon after the procedure.
dpa
Heart failure occurs when a damaged heart cannot pump enough blood to serve the body’s needs. It often happens after heart attacks, and can mean a long death sentence. About a million people in Britain are thought to be suffering from heart failure.
The new treatment involves taking stem cells from an individual’s bone marrow and injecting them into the heart.
Stem cells are unprogrammed blank slates that can become different kinds of cell. Animal studies have shown that certain stem cells from the bone marrow can turn into heart muscle.
Stem cell transplants in animals have improved heart function and blood flow. Researchers from the United States and Brazil conducted a trial to see if the same results could be repeated in patients. A total of 14 Brazilians with heart failure received an average of 15 injections containing about two million stem cells each. Seven other patients served as a comparison, or control group.
Dr James Willerson, president of the University of Texas Health Science Centre, whose team took part in the study, said, “These patients were desperately ill. They had a relatively high risk of dying, and had no other forms of therapy available because their heart failure was so severe.â€
After two months, the treated patients had significantly less heart failure and angina, and were more able to pump blood than the untreated patients. The treated group also did better on treadmill tests. After four months, they were showing a sustained improvement in pumping power and the ability to supply blood to the body.
‘Rapid track’ results from the study were published in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association. The scientists said it was unclear why the patients showed such improvement. None of the treated patients had serious problems such as sustained irregular heart rhythms or heart attacks during or soon after the procedure.
dpa