OBJECTIVETo investigate the effect of Shengmai injection on the management of "shock heart" after burns.

METHODSTwenty patients with severe burns were enrolled in the study and randomly divided into two groups according to the clinical research method, i.e. treatment group (n= 10, with intravenous infusion of 40 ml Shengmai injection together with 250ml 50 g/L glucose solution for 3 days, 1 time/ per day) and control group(n = 10, with intravenous infusion of 290 ml 50 g/L glucose injection liquid for 3 days, 1 time/per day). Beside the venous line used for routine fluid resuscitation for burn shock, another venous line was set up after hospitalization for the administration of the drug. Blood samples were obtained from the femoral vein in both groups at 12 post-burn hour( PBH) , and on 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 post burn days (PBD) for the determination of serum contents of creatine kinase-MB (CK-MB), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) and cardiac troponin I (cTnI). The changes in hepatic and renal function, as well as coagulability were determined before drug infusion and on 1 , 2, 3, 5 and 7 PSDs.

RESULTSThe serum content of CK-MB, LDH and cTnI reached the peak at 12 PBH in both groups[ (52+/-20)U/L, (5.9+/-1.3) micromol x s(-1) L(-1), (0. 274+/-0. 231) microg/L in treatment group and [(9+/-31)U/L, (8.5+/-1l.8) micromol x s(-1) x L(-1) , (0. 584+/-0. 192) microg/L in control group]. All of them decreased with the passage of time, but in the treatment group they decreased more markedly within 2 or 3 PBD compared with those in control group ( P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONEarly administration of Shengmai intravenously is beneficial to the protection of myocardial cells and in the management of the "shock heart" damage.