OBJECTIVE Sodium nitroprusside is a direct-acting vasodilator used to lower blood pressure in the operating room and ICU. The efficacy of sodium nitroprusside has been analyzed in few pediatric randomized trials. This study assesses the efficacy and safety of sodium nitroprusside following at least 12 hours of IV infusion in children. DESIGN Randomized, double-blind withdrawal to placebo stud...

The goal of hyptensive anesthesia is the safe reduction of intraoperative blood loss, thus reducing transfusion risks.  Previous hypotensive technics had a narrow margin of safety in that cardiac output was usually reduced in proportion to the degree of induced hypotension. This is in contrast to the results of our study, in which Sodium Nitroprusside was used as the sole hypotensive agent. Ni...

Left ventricular pressure and segment length were measured in seven conscious chronically instrumented dogs with the pericardium intact and 3-9 days after pericardiectomy. Diastolic pressure-length plots were obtained under control conditions and after acute volume loading followed by sodium nitroprusside infusion. In all dogs with intact pericardium, volume loading displaced the entire diastol...

In patients with malignant hypertension, immediate blood pressure reduction is indicated to prevent further organ damage. Because cerebral autoregulatory capacity is impaired in these patients, a pharmacologically induced decline of blood pressure reduces cerebral blood flow with the danger of cerebral hypoperfusion. We compared the reduction in transcranial Doppler-determined middle cerebral a...

Sodium nitroprusside, by a peripheral vasodilator action, is a powerful hypotensive drug. In contrast to established agents, its hypotensive action is accompanied by an unchanged or augmented cardiac output. Intravenous administration of sodium nitroprusside rapidly produces a profound and controllable hypotension. Normotension is swiftly restored by ceasing to infuse the agent, and antidotes a...