Does intracoronary administration of epinephrine and norepinephrine cause vasoconstriction or vasodilation in the dog heart?
In a canine model, the primary direct effect of intracoronary epinephrine and norepinephrine is coronary vasoconstriction, while observed vasodilation is a secondary metabolic effect.
Studies on the intracoronary administration of epinephrine and norepinephrine in the beating, fibrillating or potassium-arrested dog heart indicate that the primary action of these compounds on the coronary vessels is vasoconstriction. The vasodilation observed with epinephrine and norepinephrine is probably secondary to the increased rate of myocardial metabolism induced by these drugs.
Robert M. Berne (1958) studied this question.