Coagulofibrinolytic effects of recombinant soluble thrombomodulin in prolonged porcine cardiac arrest

AIM: To evaluate coagulofibrinolytic abnormalities and the effects of ART-123 (recombinant human thrombomodulin alpha) in a porcine model of cardiac arrest and prolonged cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CA/CPR). METHODS: Fifteen pigs (n = 5 per group) underwent 8 minutes of no-flow CA followed by 50 minutes of mechanical CPR, while 2 pigs underwent sham arrest. CA/CPR animals were randomized to receive saline or 1 mg/kg ART-123 pre-arrest (5 minutes prior to ventricular fibrillation) or post-arrest (2 minutes after initiation of CPR). Arterial and venous blood samples were drawn at multiple time points for blood gas analysis and measurement of plasma and whole blood markers of coagulation and fibrinolysis. RESULTS: In saline-treated CA/CPR, but not sham animals, robust and persistent activation of coagulation and fibrinolysis was observed throughout resuscitation. After 50 minutes of CPR, plasma tests and thromboelastography indicated a mix of hypercoagulability and consumptive coagulopathy. ART-123 had a robust anticoagulant effect, reducing both thrombin-antithrombin (TAT) complexes and d-dimer (p < 0.05 for each). The duration of anticoagulant effect varied depending on the timing of ART-123 administration. Similarly, ART-123 when given prior to cardiac arrest was found to have pro-fibrinolytic effects, increasing free tissue plasminogen activator (tPA, p = 0.02) and decreasing free plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 (PAI-1, p = 0.04). CONCLUSION: A porcine model of prolonged CA/CPR reproduces many of the coagulofibrinolytic abnormalities observed in human cardiac arrest patients. ART-123 demonstrates a combination of anticoagulant and profibrinolytic effects, depending on the timing of its administration relative to cardiac arrest.