[Treatment of cardiogenic shock after acute myocardial infarction with intra-aortic balloon counterpulsation (author's transl)].

Intra-aortic balloon counterpulsation (IABP) was used in 20 patients with acute myocardial infarction and cardiogenic shock, after four hours of drug treatment. In all instances the abnormal haemodynamic state had been demonstrated. Four patients were successfully treated and finally discharged home. In two with post-infarction ventricular septal defect and cardiogenic shock, IABP also successfully reversed the shock state, while in seven the shock state was reversed but they died 2-8 days after IABP had been stopped. IABP failed in seven patients who died during its application. In those in whom IABP failed there had been no significant fall in pulmonary-artery pressure and no significant increase in stroke volume. The post-mortem examinations demonstrated that cardiogenic shock was irreversible where more than 50% of the left ventricular myocardium had been infarcted.