Addition of ivabradine to β-blocker improves exercise capacity in systolic heart failure patients in a prospective, open-label study.

Introduction: Difficulties initiating and uptitrating β-blockers due to tolerability can complicate management of heart failure. Among other actions, β-blockers reduce heart rate, which is an important cardiovascular risk factor in heart failure. A new therapeutic strategy is ivabradine, which reduces resting heart rate and is associated with improved outcomes.

ACE inhibitors captopril and enalapril induce regression of left ventricular hypertrophy in hypertensive patients with chronic renal failure.

Background: Left ventricular hypertrophy is frequently noted in patients with moderate to severe chronic renal failure not requiring dialysis. Recently, several studies have shown reversal of myocardial hypertrophy in end-stage renal disease with long-term pharmacological control of blood pressure, but it is unclear whether left ventricular mass regresses or normalizes with antihypertensive treatment of patients with earlier stages of chronic renal failure.

Methods: Seventy-two undialysed patients with chronic renal failure, chronic mild-to-moderate hypertension, and left ventricular hypertrophy were randomly assigned in a prospective study to either the captopril (n = 36) or enalapril group (n = 36).