Cardiac effects of piretanide and furosemide on intact anesthetized dogs and on isolated atria

The effects of piretanide and furosemide on systemic arterial blood pressure and heart rate were examined in the anesthetized dog and the effects on atrial rate and contractile force were assessed in isolated atrial muscle perfused with heparinized arterial blood from a donor dog. When piretanide was administered intravenously to intact dogs, the depressor and bradycardic responses were produced dose-dependently. There were no significant simultaneous chronotropic or inotropic changes in the isolated atrium. On the other hand, furosemide (1-3 mg/kg) did not induce significant changes in either systemic blood pressure or heart rate in the intact dog. The atrial rate and developed tension were also not affected in the isolated atrium. A potent beta-adrenoceptor blocking agent, propranolol (1 mg/kg i.v.), consistently produced a significant depressor response and a profound negative chronotropic effect in the intact dogs; significant negative chronotropic and inotropic effects were also observed in the isolated atrium. When large doses of piretanide and furosemide were injected intraarterially into the sinus node artery of the isolated atrium, atropine-insensitive negative chronotropic and inotropic effects were induced dose-dependently. The potency of the negative chronotropic effect of piretanide was slightly greater than that of furosemide, but the negative inotropic effect of piretanide was slightly smaller than that of furosemide. These data indicate that piretanide has a depressor effect without significant cardiac influences. However, a high dose of piretanide has negative chronotropic and inotropic effects. These effects were not observed with the doses of furosemide (1-3 mg/kg) employed in this study.