Benlolo Sidney, Lefoll Cécile, Katchatouryan Vahan, Payen Didier, Mebazaa Alexandre
Department of Anesthesiology and Critical Care Medicine, Hôpital Lariboisière, Assistance Publique-Hôpitaux de Paris, Institut Fédératif de Recherche 06, Paris, France.
Anesth Analg. 2004 Mar;98(3):822-4, table of contents. doi: 10.1213/01.ane.0000099717.40471.83.
This case represents the first reported use of levosimendan, a calcium-sensitizing drug with additional vasodilation properties, for treatment of a woman with peripartum cardiomyopathy. Levosimendan induced a steady decline of increased pulmonary capillary wedge pressure, followed by a definitive increase in cardiac stroke volume. The patient recovered from this serious episode of heart failure, and she ultimately regained left ventricular function.
Acute heart failure is a life-threatening event that only rarely occurs during childbirth. We report a case of a woman who experienced cardiovascular collapse during vaginal delivery. We determined that she met current diagnostic criteria for peripartum cardiomyopathy, and we successfully treated her with levosimendan, a calcium-sensitizing drug with additional vasodilation properties.
