Sacubitril/valsartan is associated with key clinical improvements for patients with heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF), according to a new meta-analysis published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.
When it comes to reducing hospitalizations for heart failure (HHF) or all-cause mortality, however, treating patients with sacubitril/valsartan does not appear to be an effective strategy.
The study’s authors explored the existing research on this topic, including three randomized controlled trials in their meta-analysis. The three trials included more than 7,600 patients with HFpEF, and 50% of patients received sacubitril/valsartan.
Overall, treatment with sacubitril/valsartan was associated with an “incremental reduction” in N-terminal pro–B-type natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) concentration and improvements in patient responses to the Kansas City Cardiomyopathy Questionnaire, a quality of life measure focused on heart failure.
However, treatment associated with significant improvements in the patient’s New York Heart Association (NYHA) functional class. Also, taking sacubitril/valsartan was not associated with a reduced risk of HHF or all-cause mortality.
“This meta-analysis suggests incremental benefit with sacubitril/valsartan for patients with HFpEF,” wrote lead author Husam M. Salah, MD, an internist and cardiologist at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences in Little Rock, and colleagues. “These benefits were primarily limited to reductions in NT-proBNP and improvements in patient-reported quality of life.”
These findings, the researchers wrote, suggest that the use of sacubitril/valsartan “may be reasonable” for HFpEF patients who are candidates for receiving RAS inhibitors to manage certain comorbidities.
“Further randomized clinical trials are needed to clearly define the role of sacubitril/valsartan in HFpEF and subsets of patients who may benefit most,” the team concluded.
The full analysis is available here.
Michael has more than 16 years of experience as a professional writer and editor. He has written at length about cardiology, radiology, artificial intelligence and other key healthcare topics.