Cardiac contractility is the ability of the heart muscle to contract and pump blood out of the heart chambers into the coronary and peripheral circulation. Cardiac contractility can become decreased in some patients who experience a myocardial infarction (heart attack) or heart failure. Some drugs that can affect the ability of the heart to squeeze are:
Positive inotropic agents
dobutamine
dopamine
norepinephrine
epinephrine
isoproterenol
PDE inbibitors
digoxin
Negative inotropic agents
calcium channel blockers
beta blockers
