Ischemic preconditioning is the innate ability of the heart to protect itself from an ischemic episode that can otherwise lead to a myocardial infarct. But only under the condition that the myocardium has been previously subjected to lesser severe episodes of ischemia. It has been discovered that those endogenous mechanisms involved in the come about of ischemic preconditioning can also be brought up by the use of specific drugs, one of which is not a stranger to the pharmacology of cardiovascular diseases; Nitrates.