PURPOSE: To present a literature review and critical analysis about the inhaled nitric oxide (NO) application in heart surgery. METHOD: metaanalysis of published papers indexed in the MEDLINE database of the United States National Library of Medicine. Points emphasized were: the NO biology, mechanism and selective site of the inhaled NO, technical and ethical aspects, clinical applications in heart surgery. Also, a critical analysis, attempt to demonstrate the current concepts about the inhaled NO therapeutical applications RESULT: The main evidences were: the) Inhaled NO is presently recognized as a valuable pharmacological tool in the milieu of the neonatal and pediatric intensive medicine and cardiothoracic surgery; b) Other adult applications, as obstructive lung disease and acute respiratory distress syndrome, need careful observations; c) The inhaled NO therapeutics is relatively inexpensive, but it is important to consider that it should not be used in all patients, based on paradigms of efficiency and potential toxicity; d) The recent discoveries of their anti-inflammatory effects and non pulmonary effects open new horizons for future applications. CONCLUSION: Although it is evident the extreme variability of the inhaled NO pulmonary vasodilatatory selective effect, medical centers that treat patients with cardiopulmonary diseases, mainly associate to pulmonary hypertension, owe disposal of this therapeutic resource. In the absence of trials involving great number of patients, and, in spite of its potential toxicity, the inhaled NO therapeutics have to be used under rigid technical protocols to save lives.
Nitric oxide; Pulmonary hypertension; Cardiac surgical procedures
