An implantable cardiac defibrillator (ICD) significantly reduces deaths in heart failure patients, according to a new study supported by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), one of the National Institutes of Health. The study also found that treatment with the antiarrhythmic drug amiodarone does not reduce deaths in these patients.Preliminary results from the study–called “Sudden Cardiac Death in Heart Failure” (SCD-HeFT)–are being presented today at the American College of Cardiology Annual Scientific Session 2004 in New Orleans, LA.
