Mineralocorticoid receptor antagonism with eplerenone reduces mortality in heart failure, possibly because of blockade of the deleterious effects of aldosterone. To investigate these effects, rat Langendorff hearts were exposed to aldosterone and/or eplerenone. Under normal conditions, aldosterone increased left ventricular pressure and decreased coronary flow. Eplerenone did not block these ef...

BACKGROUND In EMPHASIS-HF (Eplerenone in Mild Patients Hospitalization and Survival Study in Heart Failure), eplerenone significantly reduced major cardiovascular events versus placebo in 2737 patients with mild symptoms of heart failure and an ejection fraction of <35%, in addition to recommended therapy. However, it is not known whether such benefits were preserved in patients receiving optim...

AIMS Our objective was to create a simple prognostic risk score for patients with systolic heart failure and mild symptoms. We then assessed the efficacy of eplerenone across different categories of risk. METHODS AND RESULTS The Eplerenone in Mild Patients Hospitalization and Survival Study in Heart Failure trial (EMPHASIS-HF) was an international randomized trial, comparing eplerenone with p...

To determine the extent to which dietary sodium modulates aldosterone-induced cardiovascular damage, and to determine whether increased dietary potassium can prevent this damage, we used the Nomega-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester (L-NAME)/angiotensin II (Ang II) rat model of cardiac injury. This model is dependent on the presence of aldosterone for the occurrence of myocardial damage. Two sets of...

Objectives The purpose of this study was to determine whether a diuretic effect may be detectable in patients treated with eplerenone, a mineralocorticoid receptor antagonist, as compared with placebo during the first month of EPHESUS (Eplerenone Post-Acute Myocardial Infarction Heart Failure Efficacy and Survival study) (n 6,080) and whether this was associated with eplerenone’s beneficial eff...

BACKGROUND Cardiomyopathy is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in boys with Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD). We recently showed in a 12-month double-blind randomized controlled trial that adding eplerenone to background medical therapy was cardioprotective in this population. The objective of this study was to evaluate the safety and efficacy of longer-term eplerenone therapy in boys...

BACKGROUND Recent data suggest that aldosterone antagonists have beneficial effects on diabetic nephropathy. In this study, we investigated the dose-dependent effect of eplerenone and a combined treatment with eplerenone and enalapril compared with each drug alone on renal function in type II diabetic rats. To further explore the molecular mechanism of action of combination therapy, we also per...

BACKGROUND Patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) have high cardiovascular mortality and morbidity associated with increased arterial stiffness. Plasma aldosterone levels are increased in CKD, and aldosterone has been found to increase vascular inflammation and fibrosis. It was hypothesized that aldosterone receptor inhibition with eplerenone could reduce arterial stiffness in CKD stage 3-4...

OBJECTIVES The purpose of this study was to analyze the incidence of new atrial fibrillation or flutter (AFF) in the EMPHASIS-HF (Eplerenone in Mild Patients Hospitalization And SurvIval Study in Heart Failure) database. BACKGROUND Aldosterone antagonism in heart failure might influence atrial fibrosis and remodeling and, therefore, risk of developing AFF. The development of new AFF was a pre...

BACKGROUND Aldosterone blockade is recommended for patients with congestive heart failure after acute myocardial infarction complicated by left ventricular systolic dysfunction; however, the perceived risk of hyperkalemia may limit implementation of this therapeutic approach. This subanalysis examined the relationship between eplerenone, serum potassium (K(+)), and clinical outcomes in the Eple...