Hydrogen Sulfide Limits Heart Muscle Damage During Heart Attack

A team lead by David Lefer, Ph.D., from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in Bronx New York, and University of Alabama (UAB) researchers discovered directly administering hydrogen sulfide (H2S) into the heart during a simulated mice heart attack reduced damage to heart tissue.

The hydrogen sulfide injected into laboratory hearts of mice, who had been anesthetized for surgery, and whose left ventricular artery had been clamped for 30 minutes to stimulate a heart attack (9) reduces substantially by 72 percent reduction amount of heart tissue damage (when an artery is blocked) referred to as reperfusion injury, after restoring oxygen (deprived for thirty minutes during laboratory test) and blood flow, previously blocked.

According to Dr. David Kraus, Ph.D., UAB associate professor in the Departments of Environmental Health Science and Biology, before surgery or during medical transport until adequate oxygen and blood flow is resorted, H2S could be administered to place organs into 'suspended animation", confirmed by researchers, who induced fully reversible "suspended animation" (inhaled H2S) state in animals. (10). Furthermore, Dr. Kraus concluded hydrogen sulfide would increase the number of people surviving cardiac arrest, heart transplant and trauma in general (11). When hydrogen sulfide is formulated into a low concentration saline type solution is not considered toxic or flammable gas and does not smell like foul odor or rotten eggs, compared to concentrated amount (12).

The findings of the study by David Lefer (co-author) and researchers, regarding use of hydrogen Sulfide is published in the online Edition of the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences September 18, 2007 (9).

In the United States, approximately 1.5 million people suffer a heart attack (myocardial infarction, coronary thrombosis or coronary occlusion) each year or one heart attack every twenty seconds and one-third die within the first few hours. Risk factors attributing to heart attack includes obesity, tobacco smoke, high blood cholesterol, high blood pressure, excessive alcohol consumption, family history of heart attacks and diabetes.

The leading cause of death in the United States is heart disease. Heart muscle pumps each day about 2,000 gallons of blood around the body through a circulatory system of blood vessels (1,2,3,4,5). When plaque (deposits of fatty like substance) accumulates (artherosclerosis) within the inner lining of coronary arteries, reduces or blocks one or more of the arteries supplying enriched blood of oxygen and nutrients to the heart muscle leads to a heart attack. Artherosclerosis is linked to coronary heart disease or coronary artery disease. The plaque is strong enough to tear, burst or stop the flow of blood in an artery.

Depending on the length of time or within a few minutes blood supply is cut off potentially leading to permanent muscle cell injury or cell death. (5,1,3). Those experiencing a blockage of an artery will have an irregular heartbeat called an arrhythmia, may lead to sudden death (6). Also, spasm can lead to a heart attack affecting a coronary artery, when blood flow is cut off to the heart muscle. Drugs including cocaine attribute to causing a spasm (2). Symptoms common for a heart attack include pain (usually radiatiating to the left arm) or discomfort in the chest, jaw, shoulder, arm or back, shortness of breath, nausea, vomiting, sweating and palpitations. Seeking medical attention immediately is vitally important, prevent further damage to the heart muscle and increase survival rate (1,7).

People who have survived a heart attack, often a portion of the heart muscle dies or no longer functions as well, because during the time of the heart attack, an artery was blocked preventing blood from carrying oxygen. When thirty percent or more of the heart muscle in the wall of the left ventricle is damaged after surviving a heart attack, likely develop congestive heart failure, maybe treatable by medication or may require cardiac bypass surgery (13)

"The Coronary Artery Scan is the most sensitive noninvasive method currently available to accurately identify the presence of early coronary artery disease." The Seimens Sensation 64 slice High Definition Heart Scan detects accumulation of calcium deposits in artery walls, may not yet be severe enough to appear on other tests but identify early coronary disease (8).

1. - eMedicineHealth - Heart Attack
2. - MayoClinic.com - Heart Attack - Causes
3. - pdrhealth.com - Heart Attack
4. - mayoclinic.com - Heart Attack - Risk Factors
5. - americanheart.org - Heart Attack
6. - Texasheart.org - Heart Attack
7. - wikipedia - myocardial infarction
8. - theplc.net - 64 - Slice CT High Definition Coronary Artery Scans
9. - Sciencedaily.com - Severe Heart Attack Damage Limited by Hydrogen Sulfide Study shows - September 21, 2007
10. - medicalnewstoday.com - Hydrogen Sulfide Limits Damage to Severe Heart Attack
11. - Earthtimes.org - Heart attack damage limited by H2S
12. - medicalnewstoday.com - Hydrogen Sulfide Limits Damage to Severe Heart Attack
13 - ehealthmd.com - What Are the Complications of a Heart Attack?)