Background: Levosimendan is an effective calcium sensitizer with complementary mechanisms of action: calcium sensitization and opening of adenosine triphosphate-dependent potassium channels, both on the sarcolemma of the smooth muscle cells in the vasculature and on the mitochondria of cardiomyocytes. Levosimendan has a long-acting metabolite with a half-life of approximately 80 h. There have been a few small studies on this drug regarding right ventricular function. In view of this, we investigated the effect of levosimendan on right ventricular function in patients with coronary artery disease.
Methods: This was a prospective, randomized, double-blind study on 50 patients with coronary artery disease and severe left ventricular dysfunction (left ventricular ejection fraction ≤35%) undergoing elective off-pump coronary artery bypass.
Results: Levosimendan had an inotropic effect on right ventricular myocardium and a vasodilatory effect on blood vessels. It caused a decline in pulmonary vascular resistance (p < 0.018), right ventricular systolic pressure (p < 0.001), and pulmonary artery systolic pressure (p < 0.001), and improved right ventricular diastolic function as shown by the decrease in right ventricular Tei index (p < 0.001), right ventricular end-diastolic pressure, and the ratio of early diastolic tricuspid inflow to tricuspid lateral annular velocity (p < 0.006). However, we found no beneficial effects on intensive care unit or hospital stay (p = 0.164, p = 0.349, respectively) nor a mortality benefit.
Conclusions: Levosimendan has salutary effects on right ventricular function in patients with severe left ventricular dysfunction undergoing coronary artery bypass, in terms of improved hemodynamic parameters.
Keywords: Cardiotonic agents; coronary artery bypass; hemodynamics; left ventricular function; right ventricle; ventricular function.