Man Gets Cardiac Gene Therapy

	June 17, 1999 - For the first time, doctors
have used a catheter to inject genetically engineered
DNA into heart muscles to help restore blood flow to
clogged arteries. Until now (in trials), the gene was
injected into the heart during a 2 hour surgery that
required general anesthesia.
	The new technique could be a safer alternative
to bypass surgery or angioplasty for high-risk coronary
artery disease patients, said Dr. Jeffrey Isner at St.
Elizabeth's Medical Center in Boston.
	Isner did the procedure on Sam Hart, age 81.
Same-day results encourage Hart, who had bypass surgery
and an angioplasty, but has continued to have heart
problems.
	In the new method, a catheter is inserted in
the groin and directed to the heart by x-ray imaging.
A needle is advanced out of the catheter and injects
the DNA into the inner wall of the heart. That should
lead to production of the protein vascular endothelial
growth factor, which stimulates growth of new blood
vessels.
	Dr. Nicholas Kipshidize, at the Medical College
of Wisconsin, said it's too early to tell if the
catheter method will be widely used. "We still don't
know the overall success of this procedure," he said.