Key result
Levosimendan appeared to safely improve symptoms and survival in 504 patients with post-infarction heart failure requiring intravenous inotropic support.
Why the study?
Does levosimendan improve symptoms and survival safely in patients with post-infarction heart failure requiring inotropic support?
RCT (n=504)
Does levosimendan improve symptoms and survival safely in patients with post-infarction heart failure requiring inotropic support?
Levosimendan appears safe and may improve symptoms and survival in patients with post-infarction heart failure requiring inotropic support, potentially making it unique among intravenous inotropes.
Answers are grounded in this paper and cite their sources.
Hypothesis-generating for levosimendan in post-infarction HF; randomized trials needed before practice change.
The RUSSLAN study, which randomised 504 patients with post-infarction heart failure in whom intravenous inotropic support might be deemed appropriate, was presented for the first time in a hotline session at the annual meeting of the Working Group on Heart Failure of the European Society of Cardiology. The study suggested that levosimendan, a new calcium sensitising agent, could be used safely in patients with post-infarction heart failure in the absence of severe hypotension and that it appeared to improve symptoms and survival. If these results can be confirmed it would render it unique among intravenous inotropic agents.
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Gomes et al. (1999) conducted an RCT in post-infarction heart failure (n=504). Levosimendan was evaluated on Symptoms and survival. Levosimendan appeared to safely improve symptoms and survival in 504 patients with post-infarction heart failure requiring intravenous inotropic support.
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