RSS Feeds
Use of Levosimendan for Cardiogenic Shock in a Patient with the Apical Ballooning Syndrome
- Vincenzo De Santis, MD;
- Domenico Vitale, MD;
- Luigi Tritapepe, MD;
- Cesare Greco, MD; and
- Paolo Pietropaoli, MD
- From Sapienza University of Rome, Rome 00161, Italy.
Background: The apical ballooning syndrome (ABS), also known as takotsubo cardiomyopathy and the broken heart syndrome, is an acute cardiac syndrome frequently precipitated by a stressful event. It has a clinical presentation that is indistinguishable from myocardial infarction (1). Patients commonly present with chest pain and dyspnea or with cardiogenic shock (prevalence, 2.4% to 7.4%) and ventricular fibrillation (prevalence, 0.65% to 3.9%) (2). Treatment is nonspecific.
Objective: To report a patient with ABS complicated by cardiogenic shock who recovered after intravenous administration of levosimendan.
Case Report: A 68-year-old woman with an unremarkable medical history was sent to the emergency department because of chest pain and worsening dyspnea. She had no history of recent unusual emotional or physical stress. On arrival, she was intubated because of acute pulmonary edema and cardiogenic shock. Furosemide (20 mg intravenously) was administered and dobutamine infusion was started (5 μg/kg …
