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Updated: Jun 2, 2026

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Published on: August 2, 2024
Defining characteristics of decreased cardiac output: a literature review
Sara Michelly Gonçalves Brandão1, Denise Meira Altino, Rita de Cassia Gengo e Silva
1Emergency Unit, Heart Institute (InCor), Medical School, University of Sao Paulo in São Paulo, Brazil.
Objective:
The study aims to proceed a literature review of defining characteristics (DCs) of decreased cardiac output (DCO).
Methods:
Medline database was used to perform this study. The descriptors used were "low cardiac output" and "nursing diagnosis."
Results:
Seventy-nine DCs were identified. Among them, 28 have already been approved by NANDA-I. Some data from microcirculation assessment such as high levels of serum lactate and decreased oxygen venous saturation were identified as indicators of this nursing diagnosis.
Conclusions:
Some of the approved DCs were identified through literature review but others seem to be new as they have not been cited in the NANDA-I classification.
Practical Implications:
Further content and clinical validations are needed to confirm if data from microcirculation might be considered as DCs of DCO.
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