Objective To investigate appropriate treatment strategy and timing for patients with subacute myocardial infarction and severe ischemic mitral regurgitation （IMR）. Methods A total of 89 patients with subacute myocardial infarction and severe IMR underwent surgical treatment from January 2005 to December 2011 in Beijing Anzhen Hospital. There were 66 male patients and 23 female patients with their mean age of 64 （55-73） years. All the patients received only coronary artery bypass grafting （CABG） after 3 months of medication treatment without specific management for their IMR. Echocardiography was examined before medication treatment，preoperatively and 6 months after CABG to analyze their IMR degree and measure left ventricular end-systolic dimension （LVESD），left ventricular end diastolic dimension （LVEDD） and left ventricular ejection fraction （LVEF）. Results There was no surgery-related death，perioperative myocardial ischemia or other severe postoperative complication. Eighty-one patients （91.0%） were followed up for 6-60 months. At 6 months after CABG，mitral regurgitation area （3.1±1.3 cm2 vs. 5.6±2.3 cm2），LVEDD （51.3±4.2 mm vs. 54.3±5.5 mm） and LVESD （31.7±3.9 mm vs. 34.6±4.3 mm） were significantly decreased than preoperative values （P＜0.05），but LVEF was not statistically different from preoperative value （59.1%±3.9% vs. 58.9%±5.6%，P＞0.05）. From the third year during follow-up，all the patients received annual CT examination of their coronary artery，and no significant graft stenosis （graft stenosis＞50%） was found. Conclusion With appropriately delayed CABG and right medication treatment，patients with subacute myocardial infarction and severe IMR may no longer need concomitant surgical management for their IMR， which can decrease surgical risks and reduce treatment cost.
