SOUTHFIELD, Mich., Jan. 19 /PRNewswire/ -- Implantable cardioverter defibrillators reduce death rates by 23 percent in people with heart failure, according to a landmark worldwide study conducted in part at the Providence Heart Institute and published in the Jan. 20 edition of the New England Journal of Medicine. Providence was the only center in metro Detroit to take part in the study.
The study, known as SCD-HeFT or Sudden Cardiac Death in Heart Failure Trial, suggests that approximately 600,000 Americans with this heart condition could be at risk for sudden cardiac arrest and should be protected by an ICD, which controls dangerous abnormal heart rhythms. The study involved more than 2,500 heart failure patients. It found that ICDs reduced sudden death rates in heart failure patients by 23 percent over a period of 2-1/2 years. In comparison, the patient group treated with a drug called amiodarone, the standard treatment for heart failure, experienced no decrease in death rates.
"This is a breakthrough for those living with heart failure," says Christian Macahado, M.D., cardiac electrophysiologist at the Providence Heart Institute and the Institute's principal investigator for the study. "The study results tell us that implantable defibrillators can be a very effective tool in preventing sudden death due to heart arrhythmia.
There were 829 patients in the defibrillator arm of the study and 845 in the amiodarone group. Another 847 study participants received a placebo.
The defibrillator is placed under the skin of the chest and shocks the heart by sending an electric signal to the heart to correct a potentially fatal arrhythmia. Amiodarone is used to correct irregular heartbeats.
It is estimated that about 50 percent of deaths in heart failure are sudden deaths and are probably due to arrhythmia, or rapid heartbeats in one of the lower chambers. In sudden death, the heart stops abruptly. Heart failure is a chronic and debilitating disease in which the heart can't pump enough blood to the body's other organs. The damaged heart keeps working but not as efficiently as it should. People with heart failure can't exert themselves because they become short of breath and tired. As blood flow out of the heart slows, blood returning to the heart through the veins backs up, causing congestion in the tissues.
It's estimated that more than 5 million Americans have congestive heart failure, according to the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. The NHLBI projects that between 350,000 and 450,000 new cases of heart failure are diagnosed each year.
The study was sponsored by Medtronic, Inc., a medical device company based in Minneapolis, MN, in conjunction with the National Institutes of Health.
Providence Hospital, a 459-bed teaching hospital, is a member of St. John Health, the leading provider of heart care in Michigan. The Providence Heart Institute offers complete, centralized cardiac diagnostic services including echocardiography, catheterization lab, recovery and cardiology support services in one unit, providing patients, families, staff and physicians a convenient, pleasant environment.
Providence HospitalCONTACT: Brian Taylor of Providence Hospital-St. John Health,+1-248-849-2236, Brian.taylor@stjohn.org
Web site: http://www.stjohn.org/