Combined effects of mild hypothermia and glycoprotein IIb/IIIa antagonists on platelet–platelet and leukocyte–platelet aggregation

Endovascular cooling was assessed as a potential treatment for percutaneous coronary intervention in patients with acute myocardial infarction. Here we show that mild hypothermia: (1) inhibits platelet aggregation; (2) augments eptifibatide- and tirofiban- but not abciximab-induced inhibition of platelet aggregation; (3) increases the formation of adenosine diphosphate-induced leukocyte–platelet aggregates; and (4) diminishes the glycoprotein IIb/IIIa antagonist-induced decrease in leukocyte–platelet aggregates.