a study of intracoronary injection of hematopoietic stem cells in pediatric dilated cardiomyopathy: is it an applicable solution for critically ill patients?

Background: benefits of stem cell therapy on remodelling and cardiac function have been described in adults with dilated cardiomyopathy and acute myocardial infarction. objectives: we investigated the effect of this treatment modality amongst children with severe dilated cardiomyopathy. methods: intracoronary injection of autologous bone marrow mononuclear stem cells was performed in our centers for 8 severely ill children during 2015 - 2016. themeanage of the patients was 10.1 years (5 girls, 3 boys). they were followed by longitudinal speckle tracking echocardiography (ste) and conventional echocardiography for 6 months. results: heart functional class improved in 62% of patients. m-mode echocardiography showed significant improvement in ejection fraction (mean 24.8±8.3 vs. 37.4±10.5) and in ste, the mean global longitudinal strain improved (gls: -2.8±1.9 vs. -5.2±3.9). none of the patients had serious complications. conclusions: intracoronary injection of autologous mononuclear stem cells might improve the ventricular function and cardiac remodelling in pediatric patients with dilated cardiomyopathy and could be considered in critically ill patients.