Noninvasive assessment of left ventricular effects of hydralazine in heart failure.
In order to develop a noninvasive means for following left ventricular responses to hydralazine, we measured the systolic time intervals serially in 6 patients with heart failure. Without affecting heart rate or arterial pressure, hydralazine lengthened the left ventricular ejection time relative to the heart rate (LVETc) 19 +/- 7 msec (p < 0.05) and shortened the preejection period 23 +/- 3 msec (p < 0.001), restoring it to normal in 4 patients. The data suggest that preejection period shortening and LVETc lengthening provide the basis for a noninvasive method of assessing the effects of hydralazine on left ventricular performance in heart failure.
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001794:Blood Pressure / Q000187:drug effects; D002302:Cardiac Output / Q000187:drug effects*; D006321:Heart / Q000187:drug effects*; D006333:Heart Failure / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000503:physiopathology; D006339:Heart Rate / Q000187:drug effects; D006352:Heart Ventricles / Q000187:drug effects; D006801:Humans; D006830:Hydralazine / Q000494:pharmacology*; D008297:Male; D008722:Methods; D008875:Middle Aged; D009200:Myocardial Contraction / Q000187:drug effects*; D013318:Stroke Volume / Q000187:drug effects*; D013599:Systole / Q000187:drug effects*
D006830:Hydralazine