Myocardial indium-111-antimyosin uptake in essential hypertension.

Aim: Evaluation of myocardial uptake of (111)In-anti-myosin antibodies in patients with essential hypertension for the verification of our hypothesis that it may increase in stage 1 in the left ventricle as a result of myocardial damage.

Patients, Methods: Twelve men (mean age: 59+/-2.4 years) suffering from angina like symptoms and essential hypertension in clinical stage 1 according to the JNC-VI criteria were included into the study. These patients showed normal perfusion as revealed by thallium-201 myocardial study and coronary angiography. Left ventricular mass index was determined in echocardiography. Planar antimyosin images were obtained 48 h after the intravenous injection of the tracer. Heart to lung ratios were calculated as a parameter of myocardial tracer uptake using appropriate region of interests; values>1.52 were considered as abnormal.

Results: We observed increased anti-myosin uptake (mean: 1.71+/-0.12) consistent with myocardial damage in 11 of 12 patients. Nine of 12 patients had a left ventricular hypertrophy with left ventricular mass index values (mean: 131 g/m(2)+/-9.48) above 115 g/m(2). Heart to lung ratio was correlated significantly to left ventricular mass index (r = 0.902, p<0.001) and duration of hypertension (r = 0.948, p<0.001).

Conclusion: Our results suggest that (111)In-antimyosin imaging may indicate myocyte damage in early phases of hypertensive heart disease.