Experience from experimental models in the quest to protect myocardium from ischemic damage: update on preconditioning strategies.

Protection of the myocardium during ischemia is a primary target of basic research in cardiology. Ischemic preconditioning has consistently been shown to reduce myocardial damage substantially, but for clinical application, other ways of preconditioning the heart must be found. In the search for the mechanism of ischemic preconditioning, pharmacologic and physiologic interventions that mimic ischemic preconditioning have been evaluated in various animal models. This review surveys the findings of some of these studies.