ABSTRACT
<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To evaluate the effects of Jiashen Prescription (, JSP) on myocardial infarction (MI) size and cardiac function at the early stage of MI in rats.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>One hundred male Sprague-Dawley rats were subjected to sham-operation or MI induced by ligating the left anterior descending coronary artery. The rats with MI were treated with vehicle, JSP 3 and 6 g/(kg·d), or losartan 10 mg/(kg·d) for 1 week.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Compared with the vehicle-treated MI rats, 6 g/(kg·d) JSP reduced MI size 3 days after MI (P<0.05), and attenuated the MI-induced increases in left ventricular end-diastolic and end-systolic dimension and decreases in fractional shortening and ejection fraction 1 week after MI (P<0.05). In addition, 6 g/(kg·d) JSP and losartan were equally effective in reducing MI size and enhancing cardiac functional recovery.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>JSP reduces MI size and improves cardiac function after MI, suggesting that JSP has potential as a therapy for MI.</p>