Cardiovascular therapeutics
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Comparative Study
Combination angiotensin converting enzyme and direct renin inhibition in heart failure following experimental myocardial infarction.
Diminishing the activity of the renin-angiotensin system (RAS) plays a pivotal role in the treatment of heart failure. In addition to angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors and angiotensin-receptor blockers, direct renin inhibition has emerged as a potential adjunctive treatment to conventional RAS blockade. We sought to determine the effectiveness of this strategy after myocardial infarction (MI) in the setting of preexisting hypertension, a common premorbid condition in patients with ischemic heart disease. ⋯ In a hypertensive rat model that underwent experimental MI, EF, and LVEDP, key functional indices of heart failure, were improved by treatment with combination ACE and direct renin inhibition when compared with either agent used alone.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Effect of levosimendan on estimated glomerular filtration rate in hospitalized patients with decompensated heart failure and renal dysfunction.
Only limited data of the long-term effect of levosimendan on renal dysfunction in patients with decompensated heart failure (DHF) have been published previously. To date, there has been no similar study carried out in a Chinese population. ⋯ A 24-h infusion with levosimendan transiently improved the renal dysfunction compared with placebo in patients with DHF, and its beneficial effects persisted for at least 14 days after the initiation of treatment.
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Multicenter Study Clinical Trial
Rapid transition from inhaled iloprost to inhaled treprostinil in patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension.
Inhaled treprostinil is a prostacyclin analog approved for the treatment of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) that may provide a more convenient treatment option for patients receiving inhaled iloprost while maintaining the clinical benefit of inhaled prostacyclin therapy. ⋯ Pulmonary arterial hypertension patients can be safely transitioned from inhaled iloprost to inhaled treprostinil while maintaining clinical status.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Pilates in heart failure patients: a randomized controlled pilot trial.
Conventional cardiac rehabilitation program consist of 15 min of warm-up, 30 min of aerobic exercise and followed by 15 min calisthenics exercise. The Pilates method has been increasingly applied for its therapeutic benefits, however little scientific evidence supports or rebukes its use as a treatment in patients with heart failure (HF). ⋯ The result suggests that the Pilates method may be a beneficial adjunctive treatment that enhances functional capacity in patients with HF who are already receiving standard medical therapy.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study
Effects of beta-blockade on exercise performance at high altitude: a randomized, placebo-controlled trial comparing the efficacy of nebivolol versus carvedilol in healthy subjects.
Exposure to high altitude (HA) hypoxia decreases exercise performance in healthy subjects. Although β-blockers are known to affect exercise capacity in normoxia, no data are available comparing selective and nonselective β-adrenergic blockade on exercise performance in healthy subjects acutely exposed to HA hypoxia. We compared the impact of nebivolol and carvedilol on exercise capacity in healthy subjects acutely exposed to HA hypobaric hypoxia. ⋯ Exercise performance is better preserved with nebivolol than with carvedilol under acute exposure to HA hypoxia in healthy subjects.