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Comparative Study
. 2014 May;102(5):489-94.
doi: 10.5935/abc.20140053. Epub 2014 May 9.

Incidence of ventricular arrhythmias after stem cell therapy in patients with Chagas cardiomyopathy

[Article in English, Portuguese]
Adriana Sebba Barroso de Souza, Weimar Kunz Sebba Barroso Souza, Sandra Araujo Costa, Elis Marra de Moreira Freitas, Gustavo Carvalho, Luís Antônio Batista Sá, Salvador Rassi
Comparative Study

Incidence of ventricular arrhythmias after stem cell therapy in patients with Chagas cardiomyopathy

[Article in English, Portuguese]
Adriana Sebba Barroso de Souza et al. Arq Bras Cardiol. 2014 May.

Abstract

Background: Treatment with stem cells in several cardiomyopathies may be related to the increase in arrhythmias.

Objectives: To determine whether intracoronary injection of stem cells in patients with Chagas cardiomyopathy is associated with increased incidence of ventricular arrhythmias, compared to the Control Group.

Methods: A retrospective cohort study that evaluated the medical records of 60 patients who participated in a previous cross-sectional study. The following data were collected: age, gender, drugs used and Holter variables that demonstrated the presence of arrhythmias. Holter was performed in four stages: randomization, 2, 6 and 12 months segments. The Control Group received medical treatment and intracoronary injection of placebo and the Study Group had drug treatment and autologous stem cell implant.

Results: There was no difference between Control Group and Study Group when analyzing the arrhythmia criteria. In the intra-group analysis, significant difference was found between the Holter tests of the Study Group for the variable total ventricular premature beats when compared with baseline, with p = 0.014 between Holter at randomization and Holter at 2 months, p = 0.004 between Holter at randomization and Holter at 6 months, and p = 0.014 between Holter at randomization and Holter at 12 months. The variable non-sustained ventricular tachycardia between Holter at randomization and Holter at 6 months showed p = 0.036.

Conclusion: The intracoronary injection of stem cells did not increase the incidence of ventricular arrhythmias in patients with Chagas cardiomyopathy compared to the Control Group.

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Conflict of interest statement

Potential Conflict of Interest

No potential conflict of interest relevant to this article was reported.

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