RESUMO
INTRODUCTION: The goal of this study was to determine whether assessment of myocardial contractility and hemodynamics in an anesthetized dog model, could consistently detect drug-induced changes in the inotropic state of the heart using drugs known to have clinically relevant positive and negative effects on myocardial contractility. METHODS: Derived parameters included: diastolic, systolic and mean arterial BP, peak systolic LVP, HR, end-diastolic LVP, and LVdP/dtmax as the primary contractility index. RESULTS: These results demonstrate that statistically significant increases (amrinone and pimobendan) and decreases (atenolol and itraconazole) in left ventricular dP/dtmax were observed at clinically relevant exposures. DISCUSSION: The analysis from the current study supports the strategic use of the anesthetized dog model early in the drug Discovery process for a comprehensive cardiovascular evaluation that can include left ventricular dP/dtmax with good translation to human.