Intracoronary injection of glycoprotein IIb/IIIa, abciximab, as adjuvant therapy in primary coronary intervention.

Acute coronary syndromes and, in paticular, ST - segment elevation myocardial infarction are the principle causes or mortality and morbidity in the industrialized countries. The manadgement of acute myocadial infarction is much debated in the literature; primary percutaneous coronary intervention is the treatment of choice. In the recent years there has been an increasing interest in the concept of adjunctive pharmacological therapy to improve outcomes in primary percutaneous coronary intervention. In the literature randomized trials of intravenous or more recently intracoronary injection of glycoprotein IIb/IIIa inhibitors have provided conflicting results with no definitive evidence for efficacy. The aim of the report is to review the evidence to our date on the role of intracoronary injection of abciximab during primary percutaneous intervention in the setting of acute myocardial infarction.