Effect of tirofiban on levels of MMP-9 and IL-6 in acute coronary syndrome patients after percutaneous coronary intervention

AIM: To investigate the effect of tirofiban on the levels of MMP-9 and IL-6 in acute coronary syndrome (ACS) patients after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). METHODS: A total of 68 ACS patients in our hospital from February 2007 to December 2008 were randomly divided into tirofiban group (n=34) and control group (n=34). All patients received emergency PCI. Venous blood samples were taken before and 12 h after PCI in both groups and serum samples were analyzed for MMP-9 and IL-6 by ELISA method. RESULTS: No significant difference was observed in the levels of MMP-9 and IL-6 before PCI between the two groups, but the levels of MMP-9 ［(492±65) vs.(560±82) μg/L］ and IL-6 ［(46.0±7.2) vs.(59.7±8.2) ng/L］ in the tirofiban group 12 h after PCI were significantly lower than those in the control group (P<0.05). CONCLUSION: Tirofiban protects the coronary artery by decreasing the levels of MMP-9 and IL-6 after PCI and suppressing inflammatory reaction in ACS patients.