PET Scan to Determine Areas of Blood Flow and Activity in the Hearts of Patients With Heart Disease Taking Beta-Blockers
- Conditions
- Heart Failure, Congestive
- Registration Number
- NCT00001402
- Brief Summary
The human heart is divided into four chambers. One of the four chambers, the left ventricle, is the chamber mainly responsible for pumping blood out of the heart into the circulation. Diseases of the heart like congestive heart failure (CHF), can cause the left ventricle to function improperly.
Medications called beta-blockers appear to reverse the abnormalities in the left ventricle and frequently improve the function of the left ventricle in patients with different kinds of heart disease. How beta-blockers improve left ventricle function is unknown.
One possible reason for improved function of the left ventricle with beta-blockers is improved blood flow to the heart muscle. When a region of the heart is active, it uses more fuel in the form of oxygen and sugar (glucose). As heart activity increases, blood flow to and from the area of activity increases also. Knowing these facts, researchers can use radioactive sugar (glucose) and positron emission tomography (PET) scans to observe what areas of the heart are receiving more blood flow.
In this study researchers plan to measure glucose use in heart muscle and blood flow to the heart muscle in patients with CHF taking beta-blockers.
- Detailed Description
Deterioration in left ventricular function, which is characteristic in patients with congestive heart failure, appears to be a multifactorial process. Beta-blockers appear to reverse the deterioration and frequently improve left ventricular function in patients with both ischemic and non-ischemic cardiomyopathies. The mechanism by which beta-blockers improve ejection fraction is not known. Although it is well established that regional flow, function and metabolism may improve after coronary revascularization whether beta-blocker therapy will have similar salutary results in patients with congestive heart failure is unknown. The aim of this study is to: 1) quantitate regional glucose uptake and regional blood flow before and after chronic beta-blocker administration to patients with congestive heart failure using positron emission tomography, 2) determine if alteration in either regional glucose or lipid uptake or regional blood flow correlate with improvement in wall motion and global left ventricular function, and 3) determine if ischemic and nonischemic myocardium differ in blood flow or metabolism.
Recruitment & Eligibility
- Status
- COMPLETED
- Sex
- All
- Target Recruitment
- 130
Not provided
Not provided
Study & Design
- Study Type
- INTERVENTIONAL
- Study Design
- Not specified
- Primary Outcome Measures
Name Time Method
- Secondary Outcome Measures
Name Time Method
Trial Locations
- Locations (1)
National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI)
🇺🇸Bethesda, Maryland, United States