INTRODUCTION Limited evidence suggests that serum alkaline phosphatase activity may decrease after cardiac surgery in adults and children. The importance of this finding is not known. Recent studies, however, have identified a potential role for alkaline phosphatase as modulator of inflammation in multiple settings, including during adult cardiopulmonary bypass. We sought to describe the change...

Cardiac phosphodiesterase III (PDE) inhibitors derived from pyridinone, imidazolone, pyridazinone and related structures form a new class of positive inotropic vasodilator agents (e.g. milrinone) that are beneficial in the treatment of acute and chronic heart failure. These agents inhibit the intracellular hydrolysis of cyclic AMP, thereby promoting cyclic AMP-catalysed phosphorylation of sarco...

Enterovirus 71 (EV71) was implicated in a widespread outbreak of hand-foot-and-mouth disease (HFMD) across the Asia Pacific area since 1997 and has also been reported sporadically in patients with brain stem encephalitis. Neurogenic shock with pulmonary edema (PE) is a fatal complication of EV71 infection. Among inotropic agents, milrinone is selected as a therapeutic agent for EV71- induced PE...

OBJECTIVES To assess the validity of Vasoactive-Inotropic Score as a scoring system for cardiovascular support and surrogate outcome in pediatric sepsis. DESIGN Secondary retrospective analysis of a single-center sepsis registry. SETTING Freestanding children's hospital and tertiary referral center. PATIENTS Children greater than 60 days and less than 18 years with sepsis identified in th...

Right ventricular (RV) failure is a serious common clinical problem that is poorly understood. Therefore, for failing and nonfailing hearts, we examined the distinctive inotropic responses induced in the RV myocardium after the stimulation of alpha(1)-adrenergic receptors (ARs). In RV trabeculae from nonfailing mouse hearts, alpha(1)-ARs induced a negative inotropic response, consistent with ou...

The positive inotropic action of hexainethoniuin in hypodynamic and freshly prepared papillary muscles of the cat and the hypodynamic heart-lung preparation of the dog has been demonstrated. Within certain limits, there exists a proportionality between the concentration of hexamethonium and the magnitude of the inotropic response. In both preparations results have been obtained which indicate t...

LY186126 was found to be a potent inhibitor of type IV cyclic AMP phosphodiesterase located in the sarcoplasmic reticulum of canine cardiac muscle. This compound, a close structural analogue of indolidan (LY195115), was prepared in high specific activity, tritiated form to study the positive inotropic receptor(s) for cardiotonic phosphodiesterase inhibitors such as indolidan and milrinone. A hi...

Background—Modeling of the time-[1-C]acetate activity curve assumes a constant concentration of labeled tricarboxylic acid cycle intermediates and associated metabolites, such as glutamate and aspartate, which may, however, decrease in short-term hibernating myocardium. Methods and Results—In 12 anesthetized pigs, [1-C]acetate was injected as a bolus into the cannulated left anterior descending...

Left atrial strips and right ventricular papillary muscles of kittens and left atrial strips of guinea pigs, rabbits, dogs, and chickens were exposed to ouabain, acetylstrophanthidin, or digoxin at 37°C during rest or while contracting at frequencies from 0.06 to 60/min. Both the positive inotropic effect and increases in resting tension developed fully in all preparations exposed to the three ...

The inotropic and toxic effects of cardiac steroids are thought to result from Na(+)-K(+)-ATPase inhibition, with elevated intracellular Na(+)(Na)causing increased intracellular Ca(2+)(Ca) via Na-Ca exchange. We studied the effects of ouabain on cat ventricular myocytes in Na(+)-free conditions where the exchanger is inhibited. Cell shortening and Ca transients (with fluo 4-AM fluorescence) wer...