Administration of prostacyclin prevents ventricular fibrillation following coronary occlusion in conscious dogs.

The effects of prostacyclin (PGI2) on ventricular arrhythmias following 20 min of coronary occlusion and release were studied in 34 conscious dogs. We administered PGI2 at 100 ng/kg/min and did not observe significant changes in heart rate, blood pressure, or systemic vascular resistance. During the control period, heart rate was 97 +/- 30 (mean +/- SEM) vs. 99 +/- 28 in the PGI2-treated group. Mean arterial pressure was 115 +/- 26 mm Hg and 109 +/- 10 mm Hg in the control and PGI2 groups, respectively. Systemic vascular resistance declined minimally from 2,985 +/- 221 dyn . s . cm-5 to 2,484 +/- 135 dyn . s . cm-5 during the PGI2 infusion (p = NS). Following coronary occlusion, the frequency of ventricular fibrillation was reduced from 53% (9/17) in the control group to 6% (1/17) in the PGI2 group (p less than 0.01). Overall 80-min postinfarction survival was 64% in the group receiving PGI2 infusion compared to 24% in the control group (p less than 0.05). The effects of PGI2 in preventing ventricular fibrillation following acute coronary occlusion can be ascribed to a direct action of this prostaglandin on the myocardium, rather than to an indirect effect due to a reduction in systemic vascular resistance.