Active clinical trials for "Heart Failure"

The purpose of this study is to (a) characterize the current management of patients with systolic heart failure (HF) in South Asia following an educational intervention of current guidelines and delivery of disease management tools and (b) to characterize the effect of current therapy on clinical outcomes in patients managed by tertiary care centers across South Asia. Current therapy includes characterization of the post market performance of any market released Medtronic cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) or cardiac resynchronization therapy plus implantable cardiac defibrillator (CRT-D) system for cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT).

This research project was designed to study the role of dietary modifications in heart failure (HF) patients that suffer from type 2 diabetes mellitus and obesity. Specifically, the purpose of this study is to determine whether or not heart failure patients participating in a 3-month intensive lifestyle modification program of either a high protein (30 % of total calories from protein) group will have a significant improvement in weight reduction, quality of life and clinical outcomes compared to a standardized protein (15% of total calories from protein) group.

The purpose of this study is to determine if heart failure subjects whose treatment is assisted by home BNP measurements integrated into a home health management system will have better clinical outcomes than subjects whose treatment includes home health management without BNP or than subjects treated by standard care.

Patients with severe heart failure have as many symptoms as many patients with cancer but yet do not have equal access to supportive and palliative care. They have an unpredictable course of illness, which makes difficult to judge when the palliative stage has been reached. The Heart failure and Palliative care Programme is a three-year project in Sweden financed by the Swedish Association of Local Authorities and Regions (SALAR). The overall aim is to develop, implement and evaluate a model that integrates cardiac care and palliative advanced home care for patients with severe chronic heart failure. The primary aim is to study the effects on patients' symptom burden, quality of life and activities of daily living. A randomized controlled clinical study is planned. Patients (n=62) with a confirmed diagnosis in accordance with the criteria proposed by the European Society of Cardiology and with NYHA III-IV symptoms and at least one of following criteria will be included; At least one episode of worsening heart failure that resolved with injection / infusion of diuretics or the addition of other heart failure treatment in the last 6 months and regarded optimally treated according to the responsible physician. Need for infusions-treatment. Chronic poor quality of life (VAS < 50) Signs of cardiac cachexia (involuntary non-oedematous weight loss ≥ 6% of total body weight within the last 6-12 months) less than one year life expectancy The participants will be randomized to intervention or control group. The intervention consist of a multidisciplinary approach and collaboration between specialist palliative and heart failure (HF) caregivers, in a shared structured person-centred and identity-promoting care at home during six months. Usual care is performed for the control group.

The leadless electrocardiogram (LECG) is a new technology incorporated into the Consulta CRT-P to obtain an ECG signal from the Consulta CRT-P similar to a surface ECG obtained from the device programmer (PECG) or an external ECG machine. The purpose of the study is to obtain more data on leadless ECG to determine whether LECG during standard CRT follow-up can indeed adequately replace surface ECG and to evaluate if it can be used during remote follow-up evaluations.

For complex medical patients, the transition from hospital to home-based care is a vulnerable period, placing the patient at high risk for adverse events. Using a Care Transition conceptual model, the investigators propose developing and evaluating, through a randomized controlled trial, "e-Coach," an Interactive-Voice-Response-supported (IVR) Care Transition coaching intervention, focused initially on patients hospitalized with heart failure or obstructive lung disease. This trial will test the primary hypothesis that the proportion of patients with one or more re-hospitalizations during a 90-day post-discharge follow-up period will be less in an IVRsupported care transition intervention (e-Coach) compared to a "usual care" comparison group.

An Implantable Cardioverter-Defibrillator (ICD) is a device implanted in a patient's chest to monitor the heart rhythm and deliver shocks to terminate potentially lethal arrhythmias when necessary. While ICDs reduce sudden cardiac death, patients with ICDs eventually die of heart failure or other diseases. As patients near the end of life, physiologic changes (intrinsic and extrinsic to the heart) may affect the cardiac conduction system, leading to more arrhythmias and increasing the frequency of shocks. Because ICD shocks can cause pain and anxiety and may not prolong a life of acceptable quality, it is appropriate to consider deactivating the shocking function of ICDs as patients' clinical status worsens and death is near. This will be a randomized controlled trial of a physician centered counseling and education intervention to improve clinician-patient communication about the management of ICDs.

This is a pilot study of a family-based educational program for patients with heart failure, and their family members.

This study will evaluate whether heart failure patients receiving a 16 week telephone delivered, intervention using cognitive behavior therapy to facilitate self-management of heart failure will have better clinical outcomes than heart failure patients receiving a 16 week heart failure education intervention via telephone.

In CHF central sympathetic activity is increased. ROS formation seems to play a role in this process. This study analyzes the effect of vitamin C as an antioxidant on central sympathetic activity in CHF