Influence of cardiac rhythm on the haemodynamic effects of fazadinium in patients with heart failure.

The haemodynamic effects of fazadinium were compared in two groups of elderly patients with class III functional heart failure about to undergo gastrointestinal surgery. Four patients were in sinus rhythm and four in atrial fibrillation. Following the assessment of baseline values fazadinium 1 mg kg-1 was injected i.v. and measurements obtained every 1 min for 15 min. In patients in sinus rhythm, fazadinium produced a decrease in total peripheral resistance, which was maximum at the 1st min (delta TPRI -738 +/- 88 dyn s cm-5 m2) and accompanied by a moderate decrease in arterial pressure (MAP -27 +/- 2.4 mm Hg) and cardiac index (delta CI -0.23 +/- 0.17 litre min-1 m-2) and a moderate increase in heart rate (delta HR +16 +/- 5.7 beat min-1). In patients in atrial fibrillation, a similar decrease in total peripheral resistance (delta TPRI -1160 +/- 174 dyn cm-5 m2) was accompanied by a significantly more pronounced tachycardia (delta HR +71 +/- 5.1 beat min-1) (P less than 0.001) and decreases in arterial pressure (delta MAP -51.7 +/- 5.9 mm Hg) (P less than 0.01) and stroke index (P less than 0.02).