[en] The cardiac function by radiocargiogram before and after the oral administration of isossorbide dinitrate in 20 patients with congestive heart failure is studied, including the meantime of pulmonary circulation, the meantime of cardiac cycle, cardiac debit and the dejection fraction of left ventricle. (author)

[en] Twenty subjects with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease were studied. The diagnosis was obtained from the history, clinical evaluation, pulmonary radiography, pulmonary and hepatic scintigraphies and spirometry. About 360 mg of verapamil was administered daily, every eight hours for ten days. Before and after drug administration, the arterial pressures, the spirometric measurements and nine cardiac roentgenographic indexes were measured. Vital capacity increased in all cases, but did not reach the normal levels. These data suggest that the effect of verapamil on the pulmonary circulation brought benefits to the subjects. This occurred either by direct pulmonary vasodilation, or by bronchodilation, reducing hypoxia. In all cases, the pulmonary resistance was diminished. Finally, verapamil seems to be a drug with real benefits in subjects with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and we advise a continuation of the studies. (author)

[en] Cardiac function was studied recording radiocardiographic curves before and after use of intravenous amiodarone HC1, in 40 subjects (20 normal and 20 with hypertension). The recorded radiocardiographic indices were: arm-heart time, mean pulmonary circulation time, mean time of cardiac cycle, stroke volume, cardiac index, systolic volume, systolic index and central blood volume. No alterations were observed in normal subjects. In hypertensive subjects, an alteration in the shape of the curve was noted, with better visualization of the two peaks after the use of the drug. There was statistically significant decrease (p < 0.05) of the following indices: stroke volume, cardiac index, systolic volume, systolic index and central blood volume. In normal subjects, no depressive effect on cardiac muscle was observed. The alterations in the hypertensive subjects were believed to be due to a peripheral action of the drug. (author)

[en] Ten (10) healthy subjects and thirty (30) with moderate hypertensive disease were-studied, before and after the oral use of 60 mg of nifedipine daily, for thirty (30) days. The radiocardiogram with all their indexes, the ejection fraction of the ventricular left heart and the wall ventricular motion were studied in a computerized Gama-Camara, before and after the use of nifidipine. Also, heart frequency and pressures were noted. A beneficial action of nifedipine, lowering pressures and heart frequency, so as increasing heart output, cardiac index and ejection fraction of left ventricule occurred only in hypertensive subjects. In the healthy subjects occurred no significative alterations in the studied indexes. We suppose that these results are related to the mode of action of nifedipine. It blocks, selectively, the calcium slow channels in the celular membrane. It diminishes the contractibility of cardiac muscular fibers. In the hypertensive subjects, the significative alterations found may be credited to a more sensitized condition of them to be responsible for the effects of nifedipine. The healthy subjects should have more efficient regulatory physiological mechanisms to drug actions, particularly to nifedipine in the used doses. (author)

No abstract available