Levosimendan to Reduce Perioperative Mortality

Levosimendan is a calcium sensitizer, a class of relatively new drugs including among others pimobendan and senazodan, and it is the only one approved for administration in clinical practice. Levosimendan is used in acute or chronic heart failure, in cardiac surgery, and in critically ill patients, with evidence of beneficial effects in each of these settings. It also has a fundamental role in pediatric and neonatal cardiac surgery and intensive care. In a recent International Consensus Conference, focusing on drugs and techniques affecting survival in the perioperative period, levosimendan was identified to have a positive effect on survival, with randomized evidence supporting its action