Fourteen patients with coronary artery disease and normal or near-normal left ventricular function were studied at rest and during atrial pacing until the occurrence of angina (12 patients) before and during infusion of dobutamine (3.80 + 0.45 ,ug/kg/min). At rest, during the infusion, three patients developed chest pain, mean ST segment depression increased from 0.02 to 0.08 mV (p < .001), and myocardial lactate extraction fell from + 17.5% to -1.4% (p < .05). These ischemic changes were associated with significant increases in arterial systolic pressure (134 to 149 mm Hg), heart rate (79 to 91 beats/min), coronary sinus flow (89 to 113 ml/min) and myocardial oxygen consumption (10.8 to 13.5 cc/min). In contrast, during atrial pacing, dobutamine did not reduce the pacing threshold or further increase myocardial oxygen consumption or ST segment changes; however, arterial mean and diastolic pressures were significantly lower with pacing during dobutamine infusion compared with control pacing. In the absence of heart failure, dobutamine in low doses can cause myocardial ischemia in patients with coronary artery disease. The absence of increased ischemia from dobutamine during pacing may reflect reversal of pacing-induced ventricular dysfunction. Circulation 68, No. 5, 1044-1050, 1983. BECAUSE of its relative lack of direct chronotropic and peripheral-vascular effects, dobutamine has become a popular inotropic agent for temporary support of cardiac patients with acute hypotension and lowoutput states, even when left ventricular function is only modestly impaired. Such patients frequently have had recent myocardial infarction or coronary artery surgery. Thus the effects of dobutamine on the balance between myocardial oxygen supply and demand in patients with coronary artery disease are of clinical importance. The purpose of our study was to evaluate the effects of dobutamine infusion on coronary hemodynamics and myocardial metabolism both at rest and during rapid atrial pacing in a group of patients with significant coronary disease who nevertheless had normal or only modest impairment of left ventricular function. MethodsPatients were selected for the study on the basis of a clinical diagnosis of angina pectoris and angiographic demonstration of
1044significant coronary obstruction (>50% transluminal diameter) of at least one major coronary artery. Patients with unstable angina, significant left main coronary artery obstruction, myocardial infarction within the preceeding 6 weeks, severe heart failure (New York Heart Association class III or IV), or significant valvular heart disease were excluded. The study group was selected from the patients with angina pectoris who were referred to our cardiac catheterization laboratory for coronary angiography. The study group consisted of 14 patients who met all the inclusion criteria and who consented to participate in the study. The study was done 1 to 21 days (mean 8 days) after coronary angiography. f3-Adrenoreceptor blocking agents were discontinued for 48 h...