Levosimendan: a promising treatment for myocardial stunning?

We report a case of a 55-year-old male undergoing major orofacial cancer surgery. A stent to the left anterior descending artery had been implanted for ischaemic heart disease 3 years previously. Twenty-four hours after uneventful anaesthesia and surgery, the patient developed myocardial infarction and cardiogenic shock. Immediate percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty, intra aortic balloon counterpulsation, and catecholamine therapy failed to stabilise haemodynamics. In light of successful reperfusion therapy and an only moderate elevation of troponin I, myocardial stunning rather than myonecrosis was considered to be the major contributor to life-threatening left ventricular failure. Therefore, the calcium-sensitising drug levosimendan, which exerts positive inotropic activity without increasing myocardial oxygen demand, was administered as a rescue medication. Within 24 h, levosimendan resulted in decreased filling pressures, reduced left ventricular end-diastolic volume, and augmented systemic pressures. Seven days following surgery, the patient was discharged from the intensive care unit in good clinical condition.