September 1, 2009

ESC: Case Made for CRT in Early Heart Failure

By Kelley Luckstein

An implantable device that provides cardiac resynchronization may slow the progression of heart failure in patients with asymptomatic disease, and it appears that women reap the greatest benefit from the treatment, researchers said today. fdaheart-09

 

Compared with patients who had a simple cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) implanted, patients who received one that delivers resynchronization therapy -- a CRT-ICD -- had a 34% reduction in heart failure events or death (P=0.001), said Arthur J. Moss, MD, of the department of medicine at the University of Rochester Medical Center in Rochester, N.Y.

 

The FDA has approved ICD-CRT to treat patients with Class III or IV heart failure who also have a LVEF of less than 35% and a QRS interval of more than 120 msec despite optimal medical therapy.

 

Ray Gibbons, MD, of the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., a former president of the American Heart Association, told MedPage Today that he didn't think the MADIT-CRT findings justified expanding indications for CRT-ICD therapy to the patients enrolled in the study -- those with New York Heart Association Class I or II heart failure, an ejection fraction of less than 30%, and a QRS duration of 130 msec or more.

 

MedPage Today by Peggy Peck, 09/01/09

Tags: Cardiology, cardiovascular, heart failure

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