PRECAUTIONS
General
During the administration of Dobutamine Injection, USP, as with any adrenergic agent, ECG and blood pressure should be continuously monitored. In addition, pulmonary wedge pressure and cardiac output should be monitored whenever possible to aid in the safe and effective infusion of dobutamine hydrochloride.
Hypovolemia should be corrected with suitable volume expanders before treatment with dobutamine hydrochloride is instituted.
No improvement may be observed in the presence of marked mechanical obstruction, such as severe valvular aortic stenosis.
Usage Following Acute Myocardial Infarction − Clinical experience with dobutamine hydrochloride following myocardial infarction has been insufficient to establish the safety of the drug for this use. There is concern that any agent that increases contractile force and heart rate may increase the size of an infarction by intensifying ischemia, but it is not known whether dobutamine hydrochloride does so.
Laboratory Tests − Dobutamine, like other β2-agonists, can produce a mild reduction in serum potassium concentration, rarely to hypokalemic levels. Accordingly, consideration should be given to monitoring serum potassium.
Drug Interactions − Animal studies indicate that dobutamine may be ineffective if the patient has recently received a β-blocking drug. In such a case, the peripheral vascular resistance may increase.
Preliminary studies indicate that the concomitant use of dobutamine and nitroprusside results in a higher cardiac output and, usually, a lower pulmonary wedge pressure than when either drug is used alone.
There was no evidence of drug interactions in clinical studies in which dobutamine was administered concurrently with other drugs, including digitalis preparations, furosemide, spironolactone, lidocaine, nitroglycerin, isosorbide dinitrate, morphine, atropine, heparin, protamine, potassium chloride, folic acid, and acetaminophen.
Carcinogenesis, Mutagenesis, Impairment of Fertility − Studies to evaluate the carcinogenic or mutagenic potential of dobutamine hydrochloride, or its potential to affect fertility, have not been conducted.
Pregnancy – Teratogenic Effects − Reproduction studies performed in rats at doses up to the normal human dose (10 mcg/kg/min for 24 h, total daily dose of 14.4 mg/kg), and in rabbits at doses up to twice the normal human dose, have revealed no evidence of harm to the fetus due to dobutamine hydrochloride. There are, however, no adequate and well-controlled studies in pregnant women. Because animal reproduction studies are not always predictive of human response, this drug should be used during pregnancy only if clearly needed.
Labor and Delivery − The effect of dobutamine hydrochloride on labor and delivery is unknown.
Nursing Mothers − It is not known whether this drug is excreted in human milk. Because many drugs are excreted in human milk, caution should be exercised when dobutamine hydrochloride is administered to a nursing woman. If a mother requires dobutamine hydrochloride treatment, breastfeeding should be discontinued for the duration of treatment.
Pediatric Use − The safety and effectiveness of Dobutamine Injection, USP for use in pediatric patients have not been studied.