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The following is a summary of “Sex dependent effects of cardiovascular agents on hemoglobin oxygen affinity – An ex-vivo experiment,” published in the February 2025 issue of Journal of Critical Care by Woyke et al. 

Hemoglobin-oxygen (Hb-O₂) affinity influences oxygen delivery and extraction, yet the effects of widely used cardiovascular agents on this process remain unknown.  

Researchers conducted a retrospective study to examine the effects of noradrenaline, adrenaline, atropine, milrinone, and levosimendan on Hb-O₂ affinity.  

They performed an experimental ex-vivo trial using venous blood samples from 11 volunteers (5 male and 6 female) and incubated them with specific cardiovascular agents. Oxygen dissociation curves (ODC) were measured in-vitro using a newly developed high-throughput method.  

The results showed a significant right-shift of the ODC for noradrenaline and milrinone in all participants compared to the P₅₀  in male and female controls, while levosimendan induced this shift in male samples only. Adrenaline reduced Hb-O₂ affinity in male samples, whereas atropine decreased Hb-O₂ affinity in female samples only.  

Investigators concluded the studied agents reduced Hb-O₂ affinity, displaying notable sex-based disparities, which potentially enhanced tissue oxygen delivery given sufficient pulmonary oxygenation despite uncertain mechanisms. 

Source: sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0883944124004039