• Belgin Buyukakilli, Serkan Gurgul, Derya Citirik, Olgu Hallioglu, Murat Ozeren, and Bahar Tasdelen.
• Belgin Buyukakilli, Professor Head of the Department of Biophysics, Faculty of Medicine, Mersin University, TR-33343 Mersin, Turkey, bbuyukakilli@yahoo.com.
• Croat. Med. J. 2014 Oct 1; 55 (5): 498-506.

AimTo evaluate the effects of bosentan, sildenafil, and combined therapy on the cardiovascular system using impedance cardiography (ICG) in rats with monocrotaline (MCT)-induced pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH).MethodsSeventy male Wistar-albino rats were randomized into five groups. A single dose of MCT was given to all rats, except to the control group. After 4 weeks, bosentan, sildenafil, and combined treatment was started and lasted for 3 weeks. The last group that developed PAH did not receive any medication. Echocardiographic evaluation was performed to determine the PAH development. Thoracic fluid content index (TFCI), stroke volume index (SI), heart rate (HR), cardiac index (CI), and myocardial contractility index (IC) were determined. All procedures were performed at the baseline and after 4 and 7 weeks.ResultsEchocardiographic parameters showed that the all MCT-injected rats developed PAH. There were no significant inter- and intra-group differences in TFCI, SI, and IC (P>0.05), but at the 7th week, CI value in the sildenafil-treated PAH rats was significantly higher than in other groups and HR of PAH rats with combined therapy was significantly lower than in other groups.ConclusionPAH did not have an effect on LV function of rats, or if it did, the effect was compensated by physiological processes. Also, sildenafil treatment deteriorated the LV cardiac index.

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