Pharmacologic modification of diastolic ventricular function in patients with coronary heart disease

: The influence of 2 different cardiac pharmaceutics on the diastolic ventricular function (VF) in patients with ischaemic heart disease was examined. Diltiazem, a calcium antagonist, and k-strophanthine led to a reduction of time constant T of the isovolumic relaxation from 49 +/- 9 to 39 +/- 7 msec (p less than 0.005), to an increase of the quotient dt/T from 2.4 +/- 0.5 to 3.0 +/- 0.6 msec (p less than 0.01), to an increase of the peak filling rate (PFR) from 2.08 +/- 0.65 EDV/sec to 2.34 +/- 0.67 EDV/sec (p less than 0.001), to an increase of the filling fraction (FF) from 30 +/- 12% to 33 +/- 15% (p less than 0.001). The ejection fraction (EF) and the maximum rise of pressure dp/dt did not change significantly. After k-strophanthine T was reduced from 49 +/- 7 to 46 +/- 11 msec (p less than 0.05). The increase of dt/T from 2.5 +/- 0.4 to 2.7 +/- 0.4 msec was not significant. The PFR with 2.16 +/- 0.7 and 2.08 +/- 0.8 EDV/sec and the FF with 32 +/- 14 and 34 +/- 18% did not show any significant changes. The EF rose from 52 +/- 15 to 55 +/- 16 (p less than 0.05) and dp/dt rose from 1855 +/- 468 to 2124 +/- 591 (p less than 0.05). Diltiazem improves the diastolic VF without deteriorating the systolic VF in patients with ischaemic heart disease. K-strophanthine improves the systolic VF and the velocity of the isovolumic relaxation. The other variables of the diastolic VF did not show any directed changes.