Abstract: Pharmaceutical compositions of native and engineered mutant Fibroblast Growth Factors (FGFs) and methods for treating patients undergoing ischemic cardiac reperfusion therapy to reduce or eliminate ischemic reperfusion injury, methods for treating patients suffering from or suspected of suffering from a myocardial infarction and about to undergo or undergoing cardiac reperfusion therapy to reduce extent of the myocardial infarction, and methods for treating patients who suffered a cardiac ischemic event to restore cardiac function to a pre-ischemic event level of cardiac function by administering a native or engineered mutant FGF, and, optionally, heparin.