Background. Contrast-induced nephropathy (CIN) limits the outcome of percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI).Objective. To investigate whether pretreatment with Compound Danshen Dripping Pills (CDDP) will decrease the incidence of CIN after PCI.Methods. A total of 229 patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS) undergoing PCI were divided into the control group (n=114) and the CDDP (containing salvia miltiorrhiza and sanqi) group (n=115; given 20 CDDP pills, three times daily before PCI). Serum creatinine, creatinine clearance (CrCl), high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP), P-selectin, and intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) were measured at admission and 24 and 48 h after PCI.Results. CrCl decreased after PCI but recovered after 48 h. In the CDDP group, CrCl recovered more rapidly (P<0.05). The procedure increased the hsCRP, P-selectin, and ICAM-1 levels, but these levels were less in the CDDP group (P<0.05).Conclusions. Pretreatment with CDDP can decrease the occurrence of CIN in patients undergoing PCI, suggesting that the early use of CDDP is an appropriate adjuvant pharmacological therapy before PCI.