Heart Failure

Heart failure occurs when the heart cannot pump as much blood as the body requires. This ineffective pumping can lead to enlargement of the heart as the myocardium works harder pump the same amount of blood. Heart failure may be caused by defects in the myocardium, such as an a heart attack infarct, or due to structural issues such as severe heart valve regurgitation. Heart failure can be divided into HF with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF), and HF with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF). The disease is further divided into four New York Heart Association (NYHA) classes. Stage IV heart failure is when the heart is completely failing and requires a heart transplant or hemodynamic support from a left ventricular assist device (LVAD).

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FDA sends warning letter to St. Jude Medical regarding issues at Atlanta facility

The FDA sent a warning letter to St. Jude Medical regarding a facility in Atlanta where the company manufactures its CardioMEMS heart failure system. St. Jude Medical revealed the information in an 8-K filing to the Securities and Exchange Commission on Oct. 1.

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High doses of beta-blockers improve outcomes in heart failure patients

Providing ambulatory heart failure patients with higher doses of beta-blockers significantly improved all-cause death or hospitalization, according to a multicenter, randomized, controlled trial. The researchers found increasing the dosage of beta-blockers was more effective than reducing heart rates in this patient population.

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Cognitive behavior therapy provides mixed results for heart failure patients with depression

Patients with heart failure and major depression who underwent cognitive behavior therapy had improvements in mental health and overall quality of life after six months, according to a randomized trial. However, the intervention did not improve heart failure self-care or physical functioning.

Trial offers 'reassuring' evidence of low Sitagliptin complications

An analysis of a randomized clinical trial found patients with cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes who received sitagliptin had similar rates of heart failure or other cardiovascular complications compared with a placebo group.

Clinical risk score helps predict stroke and death in heart failure patients

A clinical risk score helped predict the risk of ischemic stroke, thromboembolism and death in patients with heart failure, according to an analysis of three nationwide registries in Denmark. However, the researchers noted the predictive accuracy was modest.

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Nearly 90% of patients with heart failure are not referred to cardiac rehabilitation

Only 10 percent of patients with heart failure were referred to cardiac rehabilitation after hospital discharge between 2005 and 2014, according to a database analysis. Although the referral rates were higher in recent years, the researchers noted that they expected more people to be told to attend cardiac rehabilitation sessions.

Symptoms persist in patients hospitalized for heart failure

A large percentage of patients hospitalized for heart failure at Yale-New Haven hospital had symptoms such as anxiety and pain that are typically not associated with the condition, according to a prospective study. The researchers also found that patients often did not have improvements in symptom severity after getting discharged.

Moderate levels of physical activity may reduce heart failure risk in men

After a mean follow-up of 13 years, Swedish men who had moderate levels of physical activity had a lower risk of heart failure compared with those who had high or low activity levels, according to a population-based cohort study.

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