An international team of researchers, led by one of Indian origin, has demonstrated that a drug used to treat kidney diseases can be safely administered to patients who are hospitalised for acute myocardial infarction -- heart attack.
The team led by Mount Sinai Fuster
Heart Hospital demonstrated that the drug empagliflozin can reliably lower
heart failure episodes in individuals who have had a heart attack, regardless
of the patient's pre-existing renal function.
Acute heart attack patients are
particularly vulnerable to acute renal injury because of prolonged exposure to
kidney stressors, such as diuretics or contrast agents used during cardiac
catheterisation.
Because of this danger, doctors are
hesitant to start empagliflozin soon after a heart attack because there is
little data regarding this class of drug's safety in this particular clinical
setting. The drug can block the sodium-glucose cotransporter 2 protein that
aids in the kidneys' ability to reabsorb glucose from the blood.
Deepak L. Bhatt, Director of the
Hospital said the finding will contribute to closing a significant knowledge
gap on the clinical application of Empagliflozin in heart attack survivors.
The trial randomised 6,522 patients
with acute heart attack and increased heart failure risk to empagliflozin or
placebo. Empagliflozin reduced hospitalisation and adverse events of heart
failure, with consistent risk reductions across baseline kidney function.
Adverse event rates were similar in
both groups within 30 days after drug intake, regardless of baseline kidney
function, systolic blood pressure, or other medical therapies.
Cardiovascular disease is the
leading cause of death globally, and heart attacks are a major contributor to
this.
The team noted that the study has
significant implications for treating a very vulnerable population of patients
with cardiovascular disease globally by reassuring doctors of the safety and
effectiveness of empagliflozin early after a heart attack.
The results were presented at the
European Society of Cardiology Congress in London.
No comments:
Post a Comment