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Selective coronary artery perfusion in vitro: a method to study cardiac effects of contrast media
S Skarstein1, J A Dunkel, H Refsum
1School of Pharmacy, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway.
Rationale And Objectives:
The authors evaluated selective perfusion of the coronary arteries in the isolated rat heart as a model for studying contrast medium-induced cardiac effects and compared the effects of iodixanol, iotrolan, and ioxaglate with this model.
Materials And Methods:
Isolated, spontaneously beating rat hearts were used. Control hearts were perfused in the Langendorff or the selective perfusion mode receiving Krebs Henseleit buffer. Contrast media were injected selectively into the left coronary artery. Left ventricular pressure and electrocardiographic parameters were monitored continuously throughout the experiments.
Results:
The stability of the selective perfusion preparation was similar to that of the conventional Langendorff preparation. Ioxaglate (0.3 g iodine per kilogram body weight) significantly (P < .05) depressed left ventricular contractility and decreased (P < .05) left ventricular pressure. Iodixanol and iotrolan had minor cardiac effects.
Conclusion:
Selective coronary artery perfusion seems to be a suitable model for studying direct cardiac effects of contrast media. The nonionic dimers, iodixanol and iotrolan, induce only minor changes in cardiac function.