Vasodilator therapy is reviewed as a treatment for cardiac failure, which traditionally involves inotropic drugs and diuretics to address circulatory congestion and low cardiac output.
The text introduces the pathophysiological basis for treating cardiac failure, highlighting the traditional roles of inotropic drugs and diuretics before discussing vasodilator therapy.
THE symptoms of cardiac failure are related to some combination of circulatory congestion (often referred to as "backward failure") and low cardiac output ("forward failure"). In simple pump-function terms these symptoms indicate that the heart is performing on a depressed Frank-Starling curve relating stroke volume (or cardiac output or stroke work) to ventricular diastolic filling (pressure or volume) (Fig. 1).Therapy for cardiac failure has traditionally involved the administration of an inotropic drug to increase the contractile force of the heart and the administration of a diuretic to increase the renal excretion of salt and water. Effective inotropic therapy with . . .
Cohn et al. (Thu,) conducted a review in Cardiac failure. Vasodilator Therapy was evaluated. Vasodilator therapy is reviewed as a treatment for cardiac failure, which traditionally involves inotropic drugs and diuretics to address circulatory congestion and low cardiac output.