Effect of pituitrin or phentolamine alone or in combination on WHVP and systemic hemodynamics in patients with cirrhosis of liver

Abstract

We observed the effect of pituitrin and phentolamine alone or in combination on wedged hepatic venous pressure (WHVP) and systemic hemodynamics in 28 patients with cirrhosis. The results showed that either of these drugs used separately could lead to reduction in WHVP, each of them could also cause by-effects on systemic hemodynamics. When pituitrin in combination with phentolamine was administered, no change could be found in inferior vena cava pressure, mean arterial pressure, puls rate and cardiac index. This suggested that pituitrin in combination with phentolamine could not only efficaciously decrease WHVP, but also counteract side effects on systemic hemodynamics of each other and improve hepatic microcirculation. Our study provided evidence for the usefulness of the combination of the two drugs in controlling bleeding from esophagus varices.

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