Several measures [1] have been listed for patients in Stage A or B as previously mentioned and the Class 1 recommendations for those patients are also appropriate for patients with current or previous symptoms of HF. The effectiveness of diuretics and safety of their usage is an important aspect of the treatment that should be closely monitored along with daily measurement of weight and moderate sodium restriction. Physical activity is highly recommended, although heavy labor or sports shouldn’t be a part of it. A reduction in physical activity promotes physical deconditioning, and an increase of weight which may be associated with more strain on the failing heart.[2] Patients with chronic conditions such as HF are also recommended to be immunized with influenza and pneumococcalvaccines in order to reduce the risk of respiratory infection.
Drugs that should be Avoided or Used with Caution in Patients with HF
Pharmacological therapy should be closely monitored and several classes of drugs should be avoided in case of HF:
Calcium Channel blockers: There is no direct role of these drugs in the management of HF, due to negative and possible deleterious effect in patients with HF due to systolic dysfunction[3]. Vasoelective Calcium Channel blockers as amlodipine and felodipine have not been linked to adverse effect in HF treatment, but there is no evidence of efficacy for these drugs in the management of HF.[4] However, amlodipine and felodipine appear to be safe for the treatment of concomitant disease in HF patients, such as angina or hypertension.
Antiarrhythmic agents: Negative inotropic effect exerted by most antiarrhythmic drugs can precipitate HF in patients with reduced LV function. The reduction in LV function can also reduce the elimination of these drugs leading to further drug toxicity. Other antiarrhythmic drugs can induce some proarrhythmic effect, especially class 1 agents and class 3 agents Ibutilide and sotalol;[5] the same class 3 agents in addition to dofetilide can induce torsades to pointes.
Amiodarone is considered the safest of the antiarrhythmic drugs because of its minimal proarrhythmic effect and is generally the preferred drug for treating arrhythmias in HF patients.
Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAID):[6] The administration of non-selective NSAIDs in HF patients is linked with an increased risk of HF exacerbation, increased renal dysfunction, and abnormal responses to ACEIs and diuretics. COX-2 selective inhibitors have not been fully investigated, but observational studies indicate that they may be linked with an increased rate of HF exacerbation and increased mortality.
Aspirin benefits and risks are not well established in patients with HF and Vascular disease (includingCAD). The potential interaction between ACEIs and beta blockers is of great importance. Although no data has proven that aspirin causes more frequent HF exacerbations and interactions with those drugs, health care providers should be aware of the possibility of such risks, but no recommendation for or against aspirin therapy in patients with heart failure can be made before further data are available.
Metformin - one of the most common side effects of metformin is lactic acidosis, which can be fatal in patients with HF.
Thiazolidinediones -[8] the biggest risk of using Thiazolidinediones is fluid retention which may cause severe worsening of patients with HF.
Antidepressants: Depression is a common finding between patients suffering from HF that is usually related to high mortality rate and bad prognosis of those patients.[9] Limited data are available on the safety and the risks associated with the usage of antidepressants in patients with heart failure. Health care providers should be aware of major cardiovascular events (as HF, MI, Stroke, cardiovascular death ) that is associated with Tricyclic antidepressants (TCAs) and Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs).
PDE-5 inhibitors such as sildenafil, vardenafil, and tadalafil, are widely used in the management of erectile dysfunction in men. The use of those agents with any form of nitrate therapy is contraindicated because of severe hypotensive effect that can be life threatening.[13] In a trial where sildenafil and placebo were randomly assigned to 34 HF patients, no significant difference of symptomatic hypotension was observed, but HF patients with borderline low blood pressure and/or low volume status are in risk of severe hypotension and should avoid any PDE-5 inhibitors use.
Tumor Necrosis Factor alpha inhibitors TNF-alpha: New onset or worsening of pre-existing heart failure have been linked to TNF-alpha inhibitors.[15]Infliximab has been specifically contraindicated in doses over 5mg/kg in patients with heart failure.
Serum potassium should be closely monitored in HF patients, in order of preventing either hypokalemia or hyperkalemia, which could greatly affect cardiac excitability and conduction, leading to sudden cardiac death.[17]
Serum potassium should be maintained between 4.0 to 5.0 mEq per liter range, because low potassium level may affect digitalis and antiarrhythmic drugs treatment, while high potassium level can prevent the use of treatments known to prolong life.[17]
Supervision of HF patients with close monitoring of treatment and diet is a very important aspect of the follow-up process in those individuals. Body weight and medications should be closely monitored, because any minor change in those parameters can have a significant effect over symptoms and hospitalization of patients with HF.[18] Patient education is a crucial aspect of the management of HF, patient and family surveillance over any new change of symptoms or body weight is important in allowing early detection of those changes and implementing new treatment strategies to reduce further complications.[19]
Pharmacological Therapy of HF
Improving symptoms, reducing mortality and slowing or reversing myocardial deterioration are the main goals of pharmacological therapy in HF patients. The therapy should be also directed at preventing arrhythmias, embolic events and other exacerbating factors.
Different strategies have been implemented in the treatment of HF, but the ACC/AHA recommendations are based on a combination of 3 types of drugs: a Diuretic, an ACEI or an ARB, and a beta blocker[20]. A review of data from several trials, provide clear evidence supporting the central role of these drugs in HF patient Therapy. The Diuretics play an important role in controlling fluid retention and achieving a euvolemic state. On the other hand, ACEI and a beta blocker should be started and maintained in patients who can tolerate them because of their major effect in controlling symptoms and reducing mortality. Digoxin can be added to this regime as a fourth agent to reduce symptoms, reduce recurrent hospitalization, control great and rhythm, and enhance exercise tolerance.
Different short-studies demonstrated the efficacy of diuretics in improving various symptoms of HF, reducing jugular venous pressure, pulmonary congestion, peripheral edema and body weight, all within days of initiation of therapy.[23] No long term studies have been conducted so far to reveal the effects of diuretic therapy on morbidity and mortality, but an improvement in cardiac function and exercise tolerance in patients with HF have been demonstrated in intermediate-term trials.[24]
Diuretics produce great symptomatic benefits,[25] much more rapidly than any other drugs for HF, they can adequately control the fluid retention of HF, relieving pulmonary edema and peripheral edema within hours or days. However, Diuretics should not be used alone in controlling Stage C HF. They should be combined with an ACEI and a beta blocker to avoid further clinical deterioration and maintain the HF symptoms under control.[24]
Appropriate dose of diuretics should used in treatment of HF,[26] because low doses will cause fluid retention, which can lead to a reduced response to ACEIs and ARBs and an increase risk of decompensation with the use of beta blockers, while excessive diuretics will lead to volume contraction which can increase the risk of hypotension and renal insufficiency with ACEIs, ARBs and beta blockers.[27]
Loop diuretics are usually the first diuretics to be used to control pulmonary and/or peripheral edema. Furosemide is the most commonly used, but some patients may respond favorably to other agents in this category (as torsemide and Bumetanide) because of superior absorption and longer time of action.[28]
The starting dosage is usually 20 to 40 mg of furosemide or its equivalent, but the exact dosing should always be monitored according to diuresis and other clinical symptoms, since the ultimate goal is to eliminate the evidence of fluid retention such as jugular venous pressure elevation and peripheral edema. Outpatients with HF are usually started with low dose until urine increases and weigh decreases by 0.5 to 1.0 kg daily. Diuretic therapy should be also combined with moderate dietary sodium restriction.
Unstable or severe disease, should be controlled with intravenous diuretics( bolus or continuous infusion) and thiazide diuretics can be added for a synergistic effect.[29]
Reducing overall volume may decrease intracardiac filling pressure resulting in a lower cardiac output via the Frank-Starling relationship. This effect is usually a minor effect and does not alter the course of the therapy. On the other hand, an unexplained increase in BUN and creatinine should be closely monitored and suspected as a sign of abnormal tissue perfusion. In this case renal function and other end organ perfusion should be assessed to avoid any concomitant complications.
Angiotensin Converting Enzyme Inhibitors
Patients with moderate to severe HF or asymptomatic left ventricular dysfunction show a great improvement in survival rate with the usage of ACE inhibitors.[30] ACE inhibitors enhance the action of kinins and augment kinin-mediated prostaglandin production, so the effect of ACEIs cannot be solely explained by the suppression of Angiotensin II production. Furthermore, it has been proven that ACEIs modify cardiac remodeling more favorably than ARBs in experimental models of HF.[31] Several studies indicates that ACEIs can alleviate symptoms,[32] improve clinical status and sense of well being in patients with HF.
Another important aspect of ACEIs therapy is the reduction of mortality and hospitalization in such patients.[33] These benefits were noticed in patients with mild, moderate or even severe symptoms of HF, with or without CAD. In general ACEIs should be used together with a beta blocker and should not be used without diuretics in patients with a current or recent history of fluid retention, because of the important role of diuretics in maintaining sodium balance and preventing the development of peripheral and pulmonary edema.[24]
For the reasons mentioned above, ACEI therapy should be started in asymptomatic or symptomatic patients with HF. The beginning therapy should be a low dose ( eg, 2.5 mg of enalapril twice a day, 6.25 mg of captopril three time a day or 5 mg of lisinopril once a day). The dose should be gradually increased in one to two week if the initial therapy is tolerated and try to target a dose of 20 mg of enalapril twice a day, or 50 mg of captopril three times a day or up to 40 mg of lisinopril a day.[34] Plasma potassium and renal function should be assessed one to two weeks after starting or changing a dose and periodically thereafter. Physicians should attempt to target certain doses which have been proved to reduce the risk of cardiovascular events. If these target doses of ACEIs cannot be used or poorly tolerated than intermediate doses should be implemented. [35]
NSAIDs should be avoided since they may cause an increase in adverse effects of ACEIs in patients with HF and a decrease in the favorable effect of ACEIs therapy.[24] Some evidence suggests that aspirin may inhibit the acute hemodynamic benefits of ACEIs.[36] If the patient has a know history of coronary artery disease(CAD) then use of ASA along with ACEIs is recommended. However, but in patients with no history of CAD, there is no evidence to support the use of aspirin.
Treatment of HFrEF Stage C and D
Abbreviations:ACEI: angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor, ARB: angiotensin receptor-blocker, ARNI: angiotensin
receptor-neprilysin inhibitor, BP: blood pressure, bpm: beats per minute, C/I: contraindication, COR: Class of
Recommendation, NT-proBNP: creatinine clearance, NYHA: cardiac resynchronization therapy–device, pts: diagnosis, HF: guideline-directed management and therapy, CrCl: creatinine clearance, CRT-D: cardiac resynchronization therapy–device, Dx: diagnosis, GDMT: guideline-directed management and therapy, HF: heart failure, HFrEF: heart failure with reduced ejection fraction, ISDN/HYD: isosorbide dinitrate hydral-nitrates, K+: potassium, LBBB: left bundle-branch block, LVAD: left ventricular assist device, LVEF: left ventricular ejection fraction, MI: myocardial infarction, NSR: normal sinus rhythm, NYHA: New York Heart Association
†Hydral-Nitrates green box: The combination of ISDN/HYD with ARNI has not been robustly tested. BP response should be carefully monitored.
§Participation in investigational studies is also appropriate for stage C, NYHA class II and III HF.
2022 AHA/ACC/HFSA Heart Failure Guideline/ 2017 ACC/AHA/HFSA Focused Update of the 2013 ACCF/AHA Guideline for the Management of Heart Failure/2016 ACC/AHA/HFSA Focused Update on New Pharmacological Therapy for Heart Failure: An Update of the 2013 ACCF/AHA Guideline,2013 ACC/AHA Guideline, 2009 ACC/AHA Focused Update and 2005 Guidelines for the Diagnosis and Management of Heart Failure in the Adult (DO NOT EDIT) [37][38][39]
Nonpharmacological Interventions (DO NOT EDIT)[37][38][39]
"1. Patients with HF should receive care from multidisciplinary teams to facilitate the implementation of GDMT, address potential barriers to self-care, reduce the risk of subsequent rehospitalization for HF, and improve survival.[40][41][42][43](Level of Evidence: A) "
"1. For patients with HF who are able to participate, exercise training (or regular physical activity) is recommended to improve functional status, exercise performance, and QOL. [72][73][74][75][76][77][78][79][80](Level of Evidence: A ) "
"2. In patients with HF, a cardiac rehabilitation program can be useful to improve functional capacity, exercise tolerance, and health-related QOL. [72][73][76][77][79](Level of Evidence: B-NR) "
Diuretics and Decongestation Strategies in Patients with HF (DO NOT EDIT)[37][38][39]
"1. In patients with HF who have fluid retention, diuretics are recommended to relieve congestion, improve symptoms, and prevent worsening HF. [23][81][82][83][24](Level of Evidence: B-NR) "
"2. For patients with HF and congestive symptoms, addition of a thiazide (eg, metolazone) to treatment with a loop diuretic should be reserved for patients who do not respond to moderate or high-dose loop diuretics to minimize electrolyte abnormalities. [84](Level of Evidence: B-NR) "
"1. In patients with HFrEF, with current or previous symptoms, use of 1 of the 3 beta blockers proven to reduce mortality (eg, bisoprolol, carvedilol,sustained-release metoprolol succinate) is recommended to reduce mortality and hospitalizations. [121][122][123](Level of Evidence: A) "
"1. In patients with HFrEF and NYHA class II to IV symptoms, an MRA (spironolactone or epleronone) is recommended to reduce morbidity and mortality, if eGFR is >30 mL/min/1.73 m2 and serum potassium is <5.0 mEq/L. Careful monitoring of potassium, renal function, and diuretic dosing should be performed at initiation and closely monitored thereafter to minimize risk of hyperkalemia and renal insufficiency. [128][129][130](Level of Evidence: A) "
"3. In patients taking MRA whose serum potassium cannot be maintained at <5.5 mEq/L, MRA should be discontinued to avoid life-threatening hyperkalemia. [134][135](Level of Evidence: B-NR) "
"1. In patients with symptomatic chronic HFrEF, SGLT2i are recommended to reduce hospitalization for HF and cardiovascular mortality, irrespective of the presence of type 2 diabetes. [136][137](Level of Evidence: A) "
"1. For patients self-identified as African American with NYHA class III-IV HFrEF who are receiving optimal medical therapy, the combination of hydralazine and isosorbide dinitrate is recommended to improve symptoms and reduce morbidity and mortality. [32][140](Level of Evidence: A) "
"2. For patients self-identified as African American with NYHA class III to IV HFrEF who are receiving optimal medical therapy with ACEi or ARB, beta blockers, and MRA, the combination of hydralazine and isosorbide dinitrate provides high economic value.[141](Level of Evidence: A) "
"3. In patients with current or previous symptomatic HFrEF who cannot be given first-line agents, such as ARNi, ACEi, or ARB, because of drug intolerance or renal insufficiency, a combination of hydralazine and isosorbide dinitrate might be considered to reduce morbidity and mortality. [142][143](Level of Evidence: C-LD) "
"1. In patients with HF class II to IV symptoms, omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) supplementation may be reasonable to use as adjunctive therapy to reduce mortality and cardiovascular hospitalizations. [144][145][146][147](Level of Evidence: B-R) "
"2. In patients with HF who experience hyperkalemia (serum potassium level ≥ 5.5 mEq/L) while taking a renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system inhibitor (RAASi), the effectiveness of potassium binders (patiromer, sodium zirconium cyclosilicate) to improve outcomes by facilitating continuation of RAASi therapy is uncertain. [148][149](Level of Evidence: B-R) "
"3. In patients with chronic HFrEF without a specific indication (eg, venous thromboembolism [VTE], AF, a previous thromboembolic event, or a cardioembolic source), anticoagulation is not recommended. [150][151][152](Level of Evidence: B-R) "
"4.In patients with HFrEF, class IC antiarrhythmic medications and dronedarone may increase the risk of mortality. [166][167][168](Level of Evidence: A) "
"6.In patients with type 2 diabetes and high cardiovascular risk, the dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP-4) inhibitors saxagliptin and alogliptin increase the risk of HF hospitalization and should be avoided in patients with HF. [174][175][176](Level of Evidence: B-R) "
"2. In patients with HFrEF, titration and optimization of guideline-directed medications as frequently as every 1 to 2 weeks depending on the patient's symptoms, vital signs, and laboratory findings can be useful to optimize management. (Level of Evidence: C-EO) "
"1. For patients with symptomatic (NYHA class II to III) stable chronic HFrEF (LVEF ≤ 35%) who are receiving GDMT, including a beta blocker at maximum tolerated dose, and who are in sinus rhythm with a heart rate of ≥70 bpm at rest, ivabradine can be beneficial to reduce HF hospitalizations and cardiovascular death. [181][182](Level of Evidence: B-R) "
Pharmacological Treatment for Stage C HFrEF: Digoxin
"1. In patients with symptomatic HFrEF despite GDMT (or who are unable to tolerate GDMT), digoxin might be considered to decrease hospitalizations for HF. [183][184](Level of Evidence: B-R) "
"1. In patients with nonischemic DCM or ischemic heart disease at least 40 days post-MI with LVEF ≤ 35% and NYHA class II or III symptoms or chronic GDMT, who have reasonable expectation of meaningful survival for >1 year, ICD therapy is recommended for primary prevention of SCD to reduce total mortality. [185][186][187][188][189][190][191][192][193](Level of Evidence: A) "
"2. A transvenous ICD provides high economic value in the primary prevention of SCD particularly when the patient's risk of death caused by ventricular arrhythmia is deemed high and the risk of non-arrhythmic death (either cardiac or noncardiac) is deemed low based on the patient's burden of comorbidities and functional status. [194][195][196][197][198][199](Level of Evidence: A) "
"3. In patients at least 40 days post-MI with LVEF ≤ 30% and NYHA class I symptoms while receiving GDMT, who have reasonable expectation of meaningful survival for > 1 year, ICD therapy is recommended for primary preve≤ntion of SCD to reduce total mortality. [200](Level of Evidence: B-R) "
"4. For patients who have LVEF ≤ 35%, sinus rhythm, LBBB with a QRS duration ≥150ms, and NYHA class II, III, or ambulatory IV symtpoms on GDMT, CRT is indicated to reduce total mortality, reduce hospitalizations, and improve symptoms and QOL.[201][202][203][204][205][206](Level of Evidence: B-R) "
"5. For patients who have LVEF ≤ 35%, sinus rhythm, LBBB with a QRS duration of ≥ 150ms, and NYHA class II, III, or ambulatory class IV symptoms on GDMT, CRT implementation provides high economic value. [207][208][209][210][211][212](Level of Evidence: B-NR) "
"6.For patients who have LVEF ≤ 35%, sinus rhythm, a non-LBBB pattern with a QRS duration ≥ 150ms, and NYHA class II, III, or ambulatory class IV symptoms on GDMT, CRT can be useful to reduce total mortality, reduce hospitalizations, and improve symptoms and QOL. [201][202][203][204][205][206][213][214][215][216][217][218](Level of Evidence: B-R) "
"7. In patients with high-degree or complete heart block and LVEF of 36% to 50%, CRT is reasonable to reduce total mortality, reduce hospitalizations, and improve symptoms and QOL. [219][220](Level of Evidence: B-R) "
"8. For patients who have LVEF ≤ 35%, sinus rhythm, LBBB with a QRS duration of 120 to 149 ms, and NYHA class II, III, or ambulatory IV symptoms on GDMT, CRT can be useful to reduce total mortality, reduce hospitalizations, and improve symptoms and QOL. [201][202][203][204][205][206][213][214][215][216][217][218](Level of Evidence: B-NR) "
"9. In patients with AF and LVEF ≤ 35% on GDMT, CRT can be useful to reduce total mortality, improve symptoms and QOL, and increase LVEF, if: a) the patient requires ventricular pacing or otherwise meets CRT criteria and b) atrioventricular nodal ablation or pharmacological rate control will allow near 100% ventricular pacing with CRT. [201][202][203][204][205][206][213][214][215][216][217][218](Level of Evidence: B-NR) "
"10. For patients on GDMT who have LVEF ≤ 35% and are undergoing placement of a new or replacement device implantation with anticipated requirement for significant (>40%) ventricular pacing, CRT can be useful to reduce total mortality, reduce hospitalizations, and improve symptoms and QOL. [201][202][203][204][205][206][213][214][215][216][217][218](Level of Evidence: B-NR) "
"11. In patients with genetic arrhythmogenic cardiomyopathy with high-risk features of sudden death, with EF ≤ 45%, implantation of ICD is reasonable to decrease sudden death. [221][222](Level of Evidence: B-NR) "
"12. For patients who have LVEF ≤ 35%, sinus rhythym, a non-LBBB pattern with QRS duration of 120 to 149 ms, and NYHA class III or ambulatory class IV on GDMT, CRT may be considered to reduce total mortality, reduce hospitalizations, and improve symptoms and QOL. [201][202][203][204][205][206][213][214][215][216][217][218](Level of Evidence: B-R) "
"1. In selected patients with HF, reduced EF (EF ≤ 35%), and suitable coronary anatomy, surgical revascularization plus GDMT is beneficial to improve symptoms, cardiovascular hospitalizations, and long-term all-cause mortality. [227][228][229][230][231][232][233][234](Level of Evidence: B-R) "
Valvular Heart Disease
Heart Failure With Mildly Reduced EF (HFmrEF) and Improved EF (HFimpHF)
HF With Mildly Reduced Ejection Fraction
HF With Improved Ejection Fraction
Treatment of Patients with HF and preserved ejection fraction HFpEF (DO NOT EDIT) [235]
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↑ 33.033.133.2Garg R, Yusuf S (1995). "Overview of randomized trials of angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors on mortality and morbidity in patients with heart failure. Collaborative Group on ACE Inhibitor Trials". JAMA : the Journal of the American Medical Association. 273 (18): 1450–6. PMID7654275. Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help); |access-date= requires |url= (help)
↑ Hunt SA, Abraham WT, Chin MH, Feldman AM, Francis GS, Ganiats TG, Jessup M, Konstam MA, Mancini DM, Michl K, Oates JA, Rahko PS, Silver MA, Stevenson LW, Yancy CW, Antman EM, Smith SC Jr, Adams CD, Anderson JL, Faxon DP, Fuster V, Halperin JL, Hiratzka LF, Jacobs AK, Nishimura R, Ornato JP, Page RL, Riegel B; American College of Cardiology; American Heart Association Task Force on Practice Guidelines; American College of Chest Physicians; International Society for Heart and Lung Transplantation; Heart Rhythm Society. ACC/AHA 2005 Guideline Update for the Diagnosis and Management of Chronic Heart Failure in the Adult: a report of the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association Task Force on Practice Guidelines (Writing Committee to Update the 2001 Guidelines for the Evaluation and Management of Heart Failure): developed in collaboration with the American College of Chest Physicians and the International Society for Heart and Lung Transplantation: endorsed by the Heart Rhythm Society. Circulation. 2005 Sep 20; 112(12): e154-235. Epub 2005 Sep 13. PMID 16160202