Levosimendan Versus Milrinone for Inotropic Support in Pediatric Cardiac Surgery: Results From a Randomized Trial.

Objective: The present study aimed to determine the differential effects of intraoperative administration of milrinone versus levosimendan on myocardial function after pediatric cardiac surgery. Transthoracic echocardiography was used for myocardial function evaluation using biventricular longitudinal strain with 2-dimensional speckle tracking echocardiography in addition to conventional echocardiographic variables.

Design: A secondary analysis of a randomized, prospective, double-blinded clinical drug trial.

Setting: Two pediatric tertiary university hospitals.

Participants: Infants between 1 and 12 months old diagnosed with ventricular septal defect, complete atrioventricular septal defect, or tetralogy of Fallot who were scheduled for corrective surgery with cardiopulmonary bypass.

Interventions: The patients were randomly assigned to receive an infusion of milrinone or levosimendan at the start of cardiopulmonary bypass and for 26 consecutive hours.

Measurements And Main Results: Biventricular longitudinal strain and conventional echocardiographic variables were measured preoperatively, on the first postoperative morning, and before hospital discharge. The association between perioperative parameters and postoperative myocardial function also was investigated. Images were analyzed for left ventricular (n = 67) and right ventricular (n = 44) function. The day after surgery, left ventricular longitudinal strain deteriorated in both the milrinone and levosimendan groups (33% and 39%, respectively). The difference was not significant. The corresponding deterioration in right ventricular longitudinal strain was 42% and 50% (nonsignificant difference). For both groups, biventricular longitudinal strain approached preoperative values at hospital discharge. Preoperative N-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide could predict the left ventricular strain on postoperative day 1 (p = 0.014).

Conclusions: Levosimendan was comparable with milrinone for left and right ventricular inotropic support in pediatric cardiac surgery.