No abstract

Despite maintaining arterial pressure with phenylephrine, cerebral desaturation occurred with upright positioning. Cerebral oxygen saturation can provide a valuable endpoint when evaluating the effect of vasopressor therapy on cerebral perfusion.

Sympathomimetic-based vasopressor agents constrict both human radial and pulmonary arteries with similar potency in each. In contrast, vasopressin, although a potent vasoconstrictor of radial vessels, had no effect on pulmonary vascular tone. These findings provide some support for the use of vasopressin in patients with pulmonary hypertension.