OBJECTIVE To elucidate whether prognosis after acute myocardial infarction can be predicted by measuring plasma adrenomedullin, a novel vasorelaxant peptide.

PATIENTS AND DESIGN Plasma adrenomedullin concentrations on day 2 after myocardial infarction were measured in 113 patients with myocardial infarction with other clinical and haemodynamic variables related to mortality.

RESULTS During a mean follow up period of 25 months, 16 patients died of cardiac causes. Plasma adrenomedullin concentrations on day 2 increased significantly in patients with myocardial infarction compared with controls (mean (SD), 12.3 (8.8) v 4.9 (1.0) pmol/l, p < 0.001). Plasma adrenomedullin correlated negatively with left ventricular ejection fraction on admission (r = −0.47, p < 0.001), although it did not significantly correlate with any other haemodynamic variable. By univariate Cox proportional hazards analysis, plasma adrenomedullin, age, coronary reperfusion, maximum creatine kinase concentrations, pulmonary congestion, pulmonary capillary wedge pressure, cardiac index, and left ventricular ejection fraction were all significantly related to mortality. Among the non-invasive variables, only plasma adrenomedullin was an independent predictor of mortality after myocardial infarction (p < 0.05). The Kaplan–Meier survival curves based on the median plasma adrenomedullin concentration (10.3 pmol/l) showed that patients with high plasma adrenomedullin had a higher mortality than those with low plasma adrenomedullin (p < 0.01).

CONCLUSIONS Plasma adrenomedullin on day 2 after myocardial infarction is strongly associated with long term mortality, and thus may complement standard prognostic indicators.