Association between vasopressor dependence and early outcome in patients after cardiac surgery

Summary Arterial hypotension with vasopressor dependence is a major problem after cardiac surgery. We evaluated the early postoperative course of 1558 consecutive patients scheduled for cardiac surgery, and compared the outcome of patients with and without vasopressor dependence (defined as the need for > 0.1 μg.kg−1.h−1 noradrenaline for > 3 h in the face of normovolaemia). Vasopressor dependence was diagnosed in 424 patients (27%) and was associated with a higher incidence of postoperative renal failure (67 (15.7%) vs 7 (0.6%), respectively; p