title: Another nail in the hammer's coffin?
abstract: Blood pressure saggy? Cardiac output low? Oliguria? Increasing acidosis? Peripheries a bit cool? Poor cardiac history? No problem. Just start some dobutamine and watch the numbers improve. And if the patient happens to die, that is their fault. Or is it? Catecholamines are long-established drugs that have never undergone formal testing of long-term outcomes and safety. Their use requires re-evaluation in the light of a wide range of deleterious actions and retrospective studies suggesting harm.
authors: Bloomsbury Institute of Intensive Care Medicine, University College London, Cruciform Building, Gower Street, London WC1E 6BT, UK. m.singer@ucl.ac.uk
authors: Mervyn
authors: M
authors: Singer
authors: David
authors: D
authors: Brealey
mesh_terms: D002316:Cardiotonic Agents / Q000009:adverse effects*; D001026:Coronary Artery Bypass / Q000401:mortality*; D006351:Heart Valves / Q000601:surgery*; D017052:Hospital Mortality; D006801:Humans; D051437:Renal Insufficiency / Q000139:chemically induced*
chemical_list: D002316:Cardiotonic Agents