title: Vasoactive agents for the treatment of sepsis.
abstract: The article describes some commonly used vasoactive agents in patients with septic shock. Depending on their distinct pharmacological properties, their effects on vascular bed and cardiac function are different. For example, dopamine has equivalent effect on heart and vasculature, which can result in increases in cardiac output, mean arterial pressure and heart rate. Dobutamine is considered as inodilator because it has potent effect on cardiac systole and vasculature. Patients with sepsis and septic shock sometimes have coexisting cardiac dysfunction that justifies the use of dobutamine. Levosimendan is a relatively new agent exerting its inodilator effect by increasing sensitivity of myocardium to calcium. Some preliminary studies showed a promising result of levosimendan on reducing mortality.
authors.affiliation: Department of Emergency Medicine, Sir Run-Run Shaw Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou 310016, China;; Department of Critical Care Medicine, Jinhua Municipal Central Hospital, Jinhua Hospital of Zhejiang University, Jinhua 321000, China.
authors.forename: Zhongheng
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Department of Critical Care Medicine, Jinhua Municipal Central Hospital, Jinhua Hospital of Zhejiang University, Jinhua 321000, China.
authors.forename: Kun
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Chen
keywords: Septic shock; dopamine; norepinephrine; sepsis