Heart failure is increasing, particularly in older patients. Clinical studies may not reflect community practice, where patients are older and have more co-morbid conditions. The most effective agents in heart failure will be those with a favourable effect on cardiac remodelling that counter the important mechanisms in heart failure. ARBs are showing promise of providing more effective blockade of the RAAS and results from ongoing trials, such as Val-HeFT and VALIANT, may soon confirm these findings. These are large multicentre trials with internal mechanistic substudies designed to provide further information on the role of ARBs as heart failure and post-myocardial infarction therapy.
The HF epidemic: the need for new treatment strategies. Publishing Authors By Initials
