Dopamine (medication)

Dopamine, sold under the brand name Intropin among others, is a medication most commonly used in the treatment of very low blood pressure, a slow heart rate that is causing symptoms, and, if epinephrine is not available, cardiac arrest. In newborn babies it continues to be the preferred treatment for very low blood pressure. In children epinephrine or norepinephrine is generally preferred while in adults norepinephrine is generally preferred for very low blood pressure. It is given intravenously or intraosseously as a continuous infusion. Effects typically begin within five minutes. Doses are then increased to effect.

Common side effects include worsening kidney function, an irregular heartbeat, chest pain, vomiting, headache, or anxiety. If it enters into the soft tissue around the vein local tissue death may occur. The medication phentolamine can be given to try to decrease this risk. It is unclear if dopamine is safe to use during pregnancy or breastfeeding. At low doses dopamine mainly triggers dopamine receptors and β1-adrenergic receptors while at high doses it works via α-adrenergic receptors.

Dopamine was first synthesized in a laboratory in 1910 by George Barger and James Ewens in England. It is on the World Health Organization's List of Essential Medicines. In human physiology dopamine is a neurotransmitter as well as a hormone.