Platelet aggregation and thromboxane B2 release in patients with acute myocardial infarction--their relation to coronary patency.

Platelet function in the aortic blood in 39 patients who underwent intracoronary thrombolysis with urokinase was evaluated in the acute stage of myocardial infarction and after 4 weeks. The patients were classified into 2 groups according to the patency of the infarct vessel shown by coronary arteriography before urokinase administration. In the acute stage, 26 patients with completely occluded infarct vessel (group 1) showed a decreased level of platelet aggregation induced by adenosine diphosphate or arachidonic acid as compared with 13 patients with patent infarct vessel (group 2). The platelet aggregation in group 1 increased 4 weeks later and both groups showed similarly enhanced platelet aggregation levels as compared with normal controls. Like platelet aggregation, serum thromboxane B2 production in group 1 was lower than that in group 2 in the acute stage. Plasma thromboxane B2 levels in the aorta in both groups were significantly elevated in the acute stage, and were normalized after 4 weeks. This elevation of thromboxane B2 seems to be due to its washout from the infarct vessel, because plasma thromboxane B2 levels were significantly higher in the great cardiac vein than those in the aorta after successful reperfusion in group 1 or group 2. In conclusion, despite a significant elevation in plasma thromboxane B2 levels, platelet aggregation and serum thromboxane B2 production relatively decrease in patients with totally occluded infarct vessel. The patency of the infarct vessels should be taken into account when evaluating platelet function in acute myocardial infarction.