Studies of patients in hemorrhagic shock at Cook County Hospital have indicated that low viscosity dextran is more effective than whole blood in correcting some of the circulatory defects seen in these patients.
Further, studies show that in patients who have been adequately transfused but with whom low cardiac output persists, isoproterenol may be the drug of choice.
These are some of the conclusions drawn from studies conducted over the past three years in some 200 patients treated for shock in the hospital's intensive care and trauma units, Robert Baker, MD, told The Journal.
The series currently reported is largely composed of patients in hypovolemic shock without sepsis. All had been subject to various visceral and somatic wounds; blood loss was measured at more than 30% of total circulatory volumes.
Therapeutic agents were administered separately and in randomized order in each patient. The preinfusion findings were used as control values