A new experimental drug has been used successfully used to yield the most promising results against heart failure. According to the study, this drug has shown the most potential in lowering the risk of hospitalization or death due to heart failure by about 20%.
A pharmaceutical company Novartis is the manufacturer of the drug, which they say is shaping out to be one of the most valuable breakthrough medications that could potentially improve the heart condition of more than 20 million people worldwide that is affected with heart failure. Dr. Clyde Yancy, Chief Cardiologist at the Northwestern University in Chicago and former president of the American Heart Association said that "this is a new day" for these patients. Although Dr. Yancy was not part of the study that discovered the drug, he added that, "it's been at least a decade since we've had a breakthrough of this magnitude."
The study took into consideration over 8,000 subjects in 47 different countries for over two years, which is the largest scale experiment that has ever been done to come up with advancements against heart failure. During the entire period that the study was underway, the drug was able to reduce the incidences of heart failure related deaths by 20%, and the risk for hospitalization due to the same reason by 21%. At the moment, heart failure is one of the leading reasons 40 hospitalization and death of older patients and develops when weakened heart muscles become ineffective, primarily due to damages sustained from previous heart attacks.
Lead researcher, Dr. Milton Packer, said that these results have exceeded all of their original expectations and that the research team is very excited about their discoveries. The drug, that has yet to be named, is now being called LCZ696 and the manufacturers are seeking approval till the end of this year for use in the United States, and then again next year in Europe.
