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Copyright © 2008 Natural Standard (www.naturalstandard.com)
February 2008

Chelation Therapy for Heart Function in Blood Disorders

A new study suggests that chelation therapy may help improve heart function in patients with blood disorders, such as thalassemia.

EDTA chelation was first used in the 1940s for lead poising and was approved in by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for this use in 1953. Some clinicians who were using the substance for lead poisoning reported cases in which patients with cardiovascular diseases claimed side benefits for those conditions.

While there is theoretical rationale for use with cardiovascular diseases, namely removal of calcium from the cardiovascular tissues and plaque, there is insufficient data to support these uses.

Chelation therapy with EDTA is considered the treatment of choice in heavy metal poisoning. Many clinics offering chelation therapy as an alternative form of treatment for cardiovascular-related conditions have been created in the United States and Europe.

Researchers from Taiwan explained that the iron chelators deferoxamine (DFO) and deferiprone (L1) have demonstrated their ability to normalize cardiac function in patients with iron overload-induced cardiac disease. However, conventional chelation with DFO fails to prevent iron deposition in two-thirds of thalassemia major patients, placing them at risk of heart failure and its complications. Deferiprone appears to be more effective in cardiac iron removal.

The study noted that the detection and management of heart complications have improved dramatically over the last seven years. Non-invasive techniques of quantifying iron burden via magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) have been validated. A better understanding of cardiac pathophysiology and improved ability to detect at-risk populations are yielding better outcomes and reduced morbidity.

The study concluded that deferiprone chelation was found to be of statistically significant benefit in upgrading cardiac function and reducing iron accumulation. The use of echocardiography and MRI to closely monitor cardiac functions associated with iron overload complications and mortality has proved quite practical, suggested the study authors.

references
  1. Peng CT, Tsai CH, Wu KH. Effects of chelation therapy on cardiac function improvement in thalassemia patients: literature review and the taiwanese experience. Hemoglobin. 2008;32(1):49-62. .
  2. Natural Standard Research Collaboration: The Authority on Integrative Medicine. www.naturalstandard.com. Copyright © 2008.
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