A review of recent cardioactive and vasoactive drugs in anesthesia.

This survey article provides a current update on a variety of new cardioactive and vasoactive drugs that have recently been added to the anesthesia armamentarium. Included are discussions of pharmacologic agents, their effects on cardiovascular physiology, and mechanisms of each as they relate to specific uses of anesthesia care and general clinical practice. The cardioactive and vasoactive drugs discussed encompass sympathetic agonists, sympathetic antagonists, vasodilators, and calcium channel blockers.