Septic Cardiomyopathy

 

Features of septic cardiomyopathy:

(1) The patient is septic.

(2) The patient develops the onset or worsening of left ventricular dysfunction.

(3) The ventricular dysfunction reverses if the patient survives.

(4) The ventricular dysfunction cannot be better explained by another diagnosis.

 

In septic cardiomyopathy:

(1) there is hypkinesis of the left ventricle without major dilatation.

(2) the left ventricular filling pressure is normal or low.

(3) impaired left ventricular contractility may become more evident during infusion of norepinephrine

 

Prognostic features:

(1) Patients who show an increased oxygen consumption > 15% during a dobutamine infusion (dobutamine challenge) have a higher survival rate.

(2) The present of a hyperkinetic state with vasoplegia is associated with a high mortality rate.