Microcirculation in Cardiogenic Shock

Cardiogenic shock is usually defined as primary cardiac dysfunction with low cardiac output leading to critical organ hypo perfusion and tissue hypoxia. Despite progress in the management of cardiogenic shock, mortality remains unacceptably high.

This significant mortality, close to 40 %, is partly due to profound alterations of microcirculatory blood flow in cardiogenic shock, leading to multi organ failure, despite restoration of macro-hemodynamic parameters such as blood pressure and cardiac output. The microcirculation is the terminal vascular network of the systemic circulation consisting of microvessels with diameters < 20 μm including arterioles, capillaries, and venules. This part of the circulation is critical as it is responsible for nutrient delivering and oxygen transfer from the erythrocytes in the capillaries to the parenchymal cells to meet their metabolic demands, but it is also the area where water, other gases, hormones and waste products are exchanged.

Hence, the evaluation of clinical signs of peripheral hypoperfusion reflecting microvascular perfusion is of interest. We aimed to study these parameters such as skin capillary refill time (CRT), mottling and central-to-toe temperature difference (ΔTc-p) in a cardiogenic shock population. Assessing the prognosis of these microcirculation parameters and their interaction with macrocirculation parameters such as arterial pressure, cardiac index, left ventricular ejection fraction is also the aim of this study. Lastly, looking at the prognostic value of these markers seems interesting.