Profiling Biomechanical Responses and Workload of the Human Myocardium to Explore the Concept of Myocardial Fatigue and Reversibility

What this Trial Is About

Researchers are investigating the biomechanical behavior of the human heart muscle to better understand the concept of myocardial fatigue, which may play a role in the progression of heart failure. This study explores how the heart muscle responds to different levels of preload, afterload, and drug-induced changes in contractility, aiming to provide new insights into heart failure mechanisms and potential reversibility of myocardial damage. It is a proof-of-concept study led by the University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust. The study involves collecting heart muscle tissue or cells from adults undergoing open-heart surgery for coronary artery bypass grafting or severe valvular heart disease, as well as from healthy donor hearts that cannot be transplanted. Using in-vitro contractile assays, the muscle samples will be subjected to various conditions including different preload, afterload, stimulation frequencies, and drug-induced inotropic changes to assess their contractile fatigue behavior. Participants contribute by providing cardiac tissue samples during surgery or from donor hearts. Researchers will measure changes in the force and velocity of muscle contraction, as well as the relationship between force and muscle length. Additional assessments include biochemical measures related to energy metabolism. These evaluations occur within a day for each experiment. The study continues until April 2025, aiming to enhance understanding of heart muscle function and fatigue in heart failure.

POWER Myocardial Fatigue Study: a Biomechanical Assessment of Contractility of Human Myocardium