Clinical and pathological changes of the heart in brain death maintained with vasopressin and epinephrine

In ten brain death patients circulatory stability was attained with both vasopressin and a minimum dose of epinephrine for more than a week. Clinical and pathological changes of the heart after brain death were examined in this model. ST-T wave changes of ECG were initially observed in 57%. The required dose of epinephrine to maintain the systemic blood pressure was rather high in the first two days after brain death and could be reduced below 0.1 kg/min in a steady state. Normal level of CPK-MB in this study indicated that the damage of the heart was reversible. The cardiac biopsy specimens from the right ventricular septum were obtained serially and they showed normal or slightly swollen mitochondria. The mitochondrial scores were below 1.0 in seven patients, and they were elevated to more than 1.0 in three patients with prolonged shock. The heart of brain death was suppressed by the shock at brain death, but it could be preserved in good condition for several days with our circulatory support which uses both arginine vasopressin and epinephrine.