ACLS Cardiac Arrest Practice Test 2026 - Free ACLS Practice Questions and Preparation Guide

The concept tested is the force of the heart’s contraction. Inotropic describes contractility—the strength of the myocardium’s squeeze during systole at a given preload. This is different from heart rate (chronotropic), which is about how fast the heart beats, or from conduction velocity (dromotropic) and rhythm regularity. Clinically, positive inotropes increase contractility to boost stroke volume and cardiac output, while negative inotropes decrease it. So the property described by inotropic is the force of contraction.