Supplement of levosimendan to epinephrine improves initial resuscitation outcomes from asphyxial cardiac arrest

Bingjing Wu, Yong G. Peng, Shishi Zhao, Nana Bao, Linmin Pan, Jiaojiao Dong, Xuzhong Xu, Quanguang Wang

Levosimendan exerted favorable effects on the initial outcome in the treatment of ventricular fibrillation cardiac arrest. This study investigated the efficacy of levosimendan in the treatment of asphyxia-induced cardiac arrest in rats. Animals underwent asphyxial cardiac arrest/cardiopulmonary resuscitation, randomized to three treatment groups: epinephrine (10 μg/kg) supplemented with levosimendan (bolus 12 μg/kg and infusion for 1 h, EL group); epinephrine only (10 μg/kg, E group), or levosimendan only (bolus 12 μg/kg and infusion for 1 h, L group). The resuscitation success rate, wet-to-dry ratio of lung, and rate of alveolar and blood gas analysis were recorded. 10 rats in the EL group, 8 in the E group, and 2 in the L group showed an initial return of spontaneous circulation (P < 0.001); among them, 10, 4, and 2 rats survived at the end of a 60-min observation period from each group, respectively (P = 0.001). The coronary perfusion pressure in the EL group was higher than that of either the E or L group (P < 0.05). The lung wet-to-dry weight ratio and rate of damaged alveoli were lower in the EL group than the E group (P < 0.05). In the early stage of resuscitation for asphyxia-induced cardiac arrest in rats, levosimendan supplemented with epinephrine can significantly increase coronary perfusion pressure, reduce lung injury, and ultimately enhance the survival rate.