Inodilators in the Management of Low Cardiac Output Syndrome After Pediatric Cardiac Surgery

Postoperative low cardiac output syndrome has been shown to have both a central and a peripheral vascular involvement. Therefore, inodilators which provide with a combination of positive inotropic and vasodilating therapy, conceptually should be an ideal form of treatment. However, contradictory data on these drugs exist. Phosphodiesterase inhibitors (e.g. milrinone) and more recently calcium sensitizers (e.g. levosimendan) have been most commonly used groups in the clinical setting. This review will summarize the pharmacology of inodilators with a special foccus on current clinical evidence. This article addresses the sixth of eight topics comprising the special issue entitled “Pharmacologic strategies with afterload reduction in low cardiac output syndrome after pediatric cardiac surgery”.