Impact of empagliflozin on the mode of death of heart failure patients
Abstract
Heart failure (HF) is a long-term condition in which the heart cannot pump blood around the body as well as it should. This can lead to symptoms such as shortness of breath, tiredness, and swelling in the legs and ankles. Heart failure is a major cause of hospitalization and death. People living with heart failure are at risk of dying from heart-related causes, such as worsening heart failure or sudden cardiac death, as well as from other non-heart-related illnesses. In this research, I will study the causes of death among participants enrolled in three large clinical trials: EMPEROR-Reduced, EMPEROR-Preserved, and EMPULSE. These studies tested empagliflozin, a medicine used to treat heart failure. Empagliflozin belongs to a group of medicines called sodium-glucose co-transporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibitors, which help the body remove excess sugar through the urine and have also been shown to improve outcomes in people with heart failure. The EMPEROR-Reduced trial included people with heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF), meaning the heart’s pumping ability is weakened. The EMPEROR-Preserved trial included people with heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF), meaning the heart pumps normally but does not relax properly between beats. The EMPULSE trial included people who were hospitalized with acute heart failure, which is a sudden worsening of heart failure symptoms. Across all three studies, participants were randomly assigned to receive either…
How strong is the evidence?
Evidence Hub reads this as a randomized trial, done in people. Its evidence level is 2 of 5 (High · randomized trial). Randomized trials of a reasonable size are the strongest single-study design.
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