Clinical Research Directory

Efficacy, Safety, and Pharmacokinetics of Vericiguat in Pediatric Participants With Heart Failure Due to Left Ventricular Systolic Dysfunction (MK-1242-036)

This study aims to compare the efficacy of vericiguat versus placebo on change in n-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide (NTproBNP) from baseline to Week 16 of the Base Period. The primary hypothesis is that vericiguat is superior to placebo in reducing NT-proBNP at Week 16 of the Base Period.

Cardiac Magnetic Resonance GUIDEd Management of Mild-moderate Left Ventricular Systolic Dysfunction.

Contemporary heart failure (HF) guidelines recommend insertion of a primary prevention implantable defibrillator (ICD) in patients with left ventricular ejection fraction less than 35% (LVEF \< 35%) on maximally tolerated medical therapy. Nevertheless, there are a substantial number of HF patients who have LVEF\>35% and hence do not qualify for ICD, who succumb to sudden cardiac death (SCD). At present our tools to reliably risk stratify these patients with mild-moderate systolic dysfunction (LVEF 36-50%) are poor. It is likely that these patients have ventricular scar and/or replacement fibrosis as a substrate for their malignant arrhythmia. Cardiovascular magnetic resonance imaging (CMR) can reliably identify and quantify both ventricular scar (seen in Ischaemic cardiomyopathy, ICM) and replacement myocardial fibrosis (seen in Non-Ischemic Cardiomyopathy, NICM). Methods/Design: A multi-centre randomised controlled trial in which 428 patients with mild-moderate left-ventricular systolic dysfunction (either ICM or NICM) and ventricular scar/fibrosis on cardiovascular magnetic resonance are randomized to either ICD or implantable loop recorder (ILR) insertion and are followed up until the last patient recruited has been in the study for 3 years. Potentially eligible patients will have a screening CMR and will be enrolled into the device arm of study based on the presence of any ventricular scar/fibrosis (CMR +). Patients who do not have ventricular scar/fibrosis will be followed up in an observational registry, and will not be randomised. In both the device and registry arms, we aim to enrol 700 patients in Australia and 355 in Europe. The primary hypothesis is that among patients with mild-moderate left ventricular systolic dysfunction, a routine CMR guided management strategy of ICD insertion is superior to a conservative strategy of standard care.

A Study to Learn More About How Safe Finerenone is, When it is Taken for a Longer Time With Standard Treatment, in Children and Young Adults With Heart Failure and Left Ventricular Systolic Dysfunction

Researchers are looking for a better way to treat children and young adults who have heart failure with left ventricular systolic dysfunction (LVSD). Heart failure with left ventricular systolic dysfunction (LVSD) is a condition where the left side of the heart is weak and struggles to pump blood effectively, leading to symptoms like shortness of breath, fatigue, and poor growth. The study treatment, finerenone (also called BAY94-8862), is under development to treat newborns, children, and young adults with heart failure and LVSD. It works by blocking a protein that contributes to inflammation, scarring, and thickening in the heart and blood vessels, which may help the heart pump more blood effectively. The main purpose of this study is to learn about how safe finerenone is and how well it works in the long-term treatment of heart failure and LVSD. To understand how safe the treatment is, the study team will gather information on the number of patients who experience medical problems after taking finerenone, also known as "treatment emergent adverse events" (TEAEs). Additionally, they will collect blood samples to measure levels of an electrolyte called potassium and monitor blood pressure. They will also assess kidneys function using the estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR). In this study, which is an extension of the earlier done FIORE study, finerenone will also be studied in newly enrolled newborns under 6 months with heart failure and LVSD and children and young adults from the FIORE study. The participants will be aged from newborns up to 18 years. All the participants will continue to receive their standard treatment as routine care for heart failure, along with finerenone during the study. The participants will be in the study for around 10 to 11 months, depending on whether they rolled-over from the FIORE study or are newly enrolled newborns and infants \<6 months of age. They will take study treatment for up to 9 months. During this period, at least 6 visits are planned for participants. During these visits, the study team will: * have their blood pressure, heart rate, temperature, respiratory rate, height and weight measured * have blood samples taken * have physical examinations * have their heart examined by an electrocardiogram and echocardiography * answer questions about their medication and whether they have any adverse events, or have their parents or guardians' answer * for newborns and infants, evaluate the acceptability of the study drug formulation through parents or guardians' feedback. An adverse event is any medical problem that a participant has during a study. Doctors keep track of all adverse events that happen in studies, even if they do not think the adverse events might be related to the study treatments. The doctors will check the participants' health a month after the participants take their last treatment.

Simplified Assessment of Left Ventricular Systolic Function in Septic Shock Patients

The assessment of left ventricular systolic function is based on the measurement of left ventricular ejection function (LVEF) by the Simpson biplane method. More recently, left ventricular global longitudinal strain (GLS) has been developed to detect abnormalities of cardiac contractility in patients with preserved myocardial contractility. However, both tools are not always easy to collect in practice. This is why other ultrasound parameters have been proposed in the literature as a substitute for LVEF and GLS such as the Doppler tissue imaging (DTI)-derived mitral annular systolic peak S-wave velocity (S'), the mitral annular plane systolic excursion (MAPSE) and the longitudinal wall fractional shortening index (LWFS). The purpose of this project is to propose an algorithm using simple parameters (S' wave, lateral MAPSE, septal MAPSE, mean MAPSE and LWFS) to predict LVEF and GLS in order to diagnose patients with impaired systolic function and preserved ejection.

A Study to Learn More About How Well Finerenone Works, How Safe it is, and How it Moves Into, Through, and Out of the Body Compared to Placebo When Taken With Standard Treatment in Children With Heart Failure and Left Ventricular Systolic Dysfunction

Researchers are looking for a better way to treat children who have heart failure with left ventricular systolic dysfunction (LVSD). Heart failure is a serious condition where the heart is unable to pump enough blood to meet the body's needs. This can lead to symptoms like shortness of breath, fatigue, and poor growth in children. The study treatment, finerenone (also called BAY94-8862), works by blocking a protein involved in inflammation, scarring, and thickening of the heart and blood vessels. This may help the heart to pump blood more effectively. This is the first study to explore its use specifically for children with heart failure and LVSD. The main purpose of this study is to learn if finerenone works to help the heart compared to placebo in children with heart failure and LVSD. For this, the researchers will collect and analyze data on the levels of a protein called NT-proBNP in the blood, which indicates heart stress, and monitor the safety of the treatment. The study will include children with heart failure and LVSD aged from 6 months to less than 18 years. The study participants will be randomly assigned to one of two treatment groups. Based on their group, they will receive either finerenone or a placebo for a duration of 3 months. A placebo looks like a treatment but does not have any medicine in it. Throughout the study, all participants will continue to receive their standard heart failure treatments. At the start of this study, the doctors will check each participant's medical history and current medications. If participants qualify for the treatment phase, they will undergo treatment for about 90 days. During this time, they will visit the study site at least 3 times. During these visits, the participants will: * have their blood pressure, heart rate, temperature, respiratory rate, height and weight measured * have their heart examined by electrocardiogram (ECG) and echocardiogram * have blood samples taken * have physical examinations * answer questions about their medication and whether they have any adverse events, or have their parents or guardians' answers An adverse event is any medical problem that a participant has during a study. Doctors keep track of all adverse events that happen in studies, even if they do not think the adverse events might be related to the study treatments. After the initial three-month study, eligible participants will have the option to join a nine-month open-label extension study where all will receive finerenone. Participants who choose not to enroll in the extension will have a follow-up visit 30 days after their last treatment.

Multimodality Evaluation of Left Ventricular Remodeling In Mitral Regurgitation: A Pilot Study

The purpose of this research is to determine the feasibility of a larger, future study proposing a multimodal approach using cardiac CT and MRI to assess the risk of developing left ventricular (LV) systolic dysfunction in patients with mitral regurgitation (MR).

Effect of Oral sucRosomIal Iron on exerciSE Capacity and Quality of Life in Patients With Heart Failure

The goal of this study is to investigate the effect of oral sucrosomial iron on exercise capacity and quality of life in patients with heart failure (HF) and iron deficiency (ID). The main question the study aims to answer is whether oral sucrosomial iron improved exercise capacity, assessed by six-minute walk test, and quality of life, assessed by Kansas City Cardiomyopathy Questionnaire, compared with placebo. One group of participants will receive treatment with oral sucrosomial iron and the other group will receive treatment with placebo.

Early Evaluation of Left Ventricular Systolic Function Impairment in Patients With Chronic Kidney Disease by Multimodal Ultrasonography

The goal of this observational study is to learn about the value of multimodal ultrasound in early detection of left ventricular systolic dysfunction in patients with chronic kidney disease(CKD). The main questions it aims to answer are: 1. If first-phase ejection fraction（EF1）could early detect the left ventricular systolic dysfunction in patients with CKD. 2. Whether EF1 can detect left ventricular systolic dysfunction in patients with CKD more sensitively than speckle-tracking echocardiography and myocardial work. Participants will need to cooperate to do an echocardiography. Researchers will compare healthy volunteers and patients with CKD to see if EF1 could early detect the left ventricular systolic dysfunction.

The Relationship Between Inflammatory ARTritis and CArdiac DIseAse

The goal of this prospective cohort study is to investigate cardiac comorbidity in a random sample of approximately 1200 patients from a population of outpatients with rheumatoid arthritis and axial spondyloarthritis referred to collectively as inflammatory arthritis (IA). The main questions it aims to answer are: * Using conventional echocardiography, the investigators aim to determine the prevalence of overt and asymptomatic cardiac dysfunction in a large random sample of outpatients with IA. Cardiac dysfunction will be evaluated by echocardiography and cardiac biomarkers (NT-pro-BNP, hs-TNT and hs-CRP). * In patients without known heart disease: Using 2, 5 and 10 year follow-up, the investigators aim to examine if advanced echocardiography can be used to detect early signs of heart disease by investigating the clinical significance of adding deformation measures - alone and in combination with selected biomarkers - to conventional risk factors in the cardiac risk assessment of patients with IA Participants will undergo an echocardiographic examination in combination with a general health assessment including obtainment of cardiac biomarkers and a electrocardiogram. Using advanced echocardiography - Tissue Doppler Imaging, 2- dimensional speckle tracking echocardiography, 3D-echocardiography and 3-dimensional speckle tracking echocardiography - the investigators also aim to compare myocardial deformation parameters of patients with IA to a gender and age matched control group without IA from the Copenhagen City Heart Study.

Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance GUIDEd Insertion of Implantable Cardiac Defibrillator in Dilated CardioMyopathy

CMR GUIDE DCM is a randomized controlled trial with a registry for non-randomized patients. Patients enrolled will have non-ischemic cardiomyopathy (NICM) with mild to severe Left Ventricular (LV) systolic dysfunction with replacement fibrosis identified on Cardiac Magnetic Resonance (CMR). 954 patients will be randomised from 50 sites across 4-6 countries worldwide to receive an implantable defibrillator (ICD) or implantable loop recorder (ILR). Device and clinical follow-up will be performed at 3, 6, 12, 24, 36 months and at end of study.