[Anesthetic management of 6 cases with dilated cardiomyopathy for non-cardiac surgery].

We report anesthetic management of 6 cases (5 patients) with dilated cardiomyopathy for noncardiac surgery. The severity of their cardiomyopathy evaluated by left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) utilizing echocardiography was different in each case. The management of anesthesia was divided into 3 steps according to the LVEF. In cases with LVEF over 0.45, it was possible to perform regular anesthetic management by carefully selecting and controlling anesthetic agents. In 2 cases with LVEF from 0.2 to 0.4, anesthetic management was difficult. Some vasoactive drugs (e.g. dopamine) and intensive monitoring devices (e.g. pulmonary artery catheter) were needed to optimize anesthetic course. In one case with LVEF less than 0.2, we discussed much about surgical indication. Because of the malignant nature of the tumor, we agreed to proceed. IABP was inserted preoperatively and this proved to be life-saving during the procedure. It is important to have an inter-departmental discussion on these severely compromised cases.