Acute haemodynamic and neurohumoral effects of intravenous nisoldipine in patients with severe congestive heart failure

Twenty patients (5 females, 15 males) with severe heart failure (NYHA IV), due to coronary artery disease in 14, and congestive cardiomyopathy in 6, received an intravenous bolus of the calcium blocker nisoldipine 0.2 mg followed by a continous infusion of 0.2 μg · kg−1 · min−1. Haemodynamic measurements were performed at baseline and after 30 min.