The Use of Cardiotonic Drugs in Neonates

This overview provides a summary of the commonly used vasoactive agents and the various clinical scenarios in which they are used in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). The lack of well-designed clinical trials in this vulnerable population means that these agents continue to be administered without sufficient evidence-based knowledge on their dosing, safety, efficacy and long-term effects. The lack of age appropriate cardiotonic formulations remains an ongoing challenge. Future trials of cardiotonic drugs need to incorporate echocardiography and other objective monitoring tools in their design with robust assessments of short and longer-term outcomes.