Severe RDS negatively influences LV and RV myocardial contractility. PLV with perfluorocarbon is a promising new technique to treat RDS, but does increase pulmonary vascular resistance leading to a further strain on (RV) myocardial function. The effect of RDS and subsequent PLV on RV/LV function was investigated in 8 anesthesized mechanically ventilated newborn lambs. RV/LV-contractility and cardiac output (CO) were assessed by measuring RV/LV-pressure and RV/LV-volume (conductance catheter), using inferior caval vein occlusion to obtain slope (Ees: kPa/ml) of the end-systolic pressure-volume-relationship. Measurements were done before RDS, during RDS(induced by wash out of surfactant), and at 30 and 60 min after the start of PLV.

Results: Peak inspiratory pressure and FiO2 increased during RDS but decreased during subsequent PLV (15±3, 39±4 and 30±7 cmH2O, p<0.05; 0.24±0.03, 1.00±0.00 and 0.72±0.22,p<0.05). Pulmonary artery pressure increased during RDS and PLV (baseline: 15±4;, RDS:25±7; PLV-60: 26±8 mmHg, p<0.05). RV/LV-contractility decreased during RDS and did not recover during PLV (table). CO showed a nonsignificant decrease during RDS with partial recovery during PLV.

Table 1
Full size table

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