The hemodynamic effects, after infusion of 4 ml/kg of hypertonic (7.5%) saline solution (HS), were evaluated in six patients (mean age = 56.6 years) with cardiogenic shock (CS) due to right ventricular infarction (RVI). Basal condition data (mean +/- SEM) were as follows: cardiac index (CI) = 1.9 +/- 0.1 1/min/m2, arterial pressure (AP) = 66.5 +/- 0.9 mmHg, and systemic vascular resistance (SVR) = 31.3 +/- 1.0 mmHg/1/min/m2. Five- and 240-minute post-HS infusion data (respectively) revealed: CI = 3.3 +/- 0.1* and 2.9 +/- 0.1* 1/min/m2, AP = 87.7 +/- 1.6* and 80.7 +/- 2.2* mmHg, and SVR = 22.5 +/- 0.6* and 24.5 +/- 1.1* mmHg/1/min/m2 (*P less than 0.05 compared to baseline values). These data suggest that small-volume infusion of HS induced an important acute and sustained hemodynamic improvement in these patients with CS due to RVI.