UBIQUITY OF MYOCARDIAL STUNNING

We observed over two decades ago that myocardium rendered ischemic, bu t not irreversibly damaged, exhibited prolonged depression of regional myocardial function, long after the complete return of blood flow and resumption of a normal electrocardiographic pattern (3). At that time we did not appreciate the extent to which this characteristic of isch emic myocardium would be involved mechanistically in so many experimen tal and clinical settings. With the additional work of Kloner and Brau nwald, the phenomenon of delayed recovery of postischemic tissue becam e known as ''stunned myocardium'' (2).