Objective. To describe treatment peculiarities of ambulatory chronic heart failure patients’ in one of Lithuania’s university centres, participating in European Society of Cardiology EURObservation Research Programme (EORP) Heart Failure Long- Term Registry. Methods. 240 ambulatory patients with chronic heart failure were entered in European Society of Cardiology EURObservation Research Programme (EORP) Heart Failure Long-Term Registry from our university centre between May 2011 and March 2013. Follow-up data were collected after 12 months. Registered data about heart failure treatment were included to this study. Statistical analysis was performed with SPSS 22 program. Results. In our centre 67,1% of patients received angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors at target doses, one third (34,3%) had not reached target doses due to symptomatic hypotension. Beta blockers were up-titrated to target doses for 82,5% of patients and the main reasons for failure to reach their target dose were: symptomatic bradycardia (12,7%), symptomatic hypotension (10,7%). Mineralocorticoid receptor antagonists were up-titrated to a target doses just for half of the patients – 52,1% and the most frequent reason for not reaching target doses was hyperkalemia (15,4%). Conclusions. Angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors, beta-blockers and mineralocorticoid receptors antagonists, except angiotensin receptor blockers, were prescribed in a guideline-recommended doses. The main reasons why the target doses of neurohormone blockers have not been achieved were symptomatic hypotension for angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors, symptomatic bradycardia for beta-blockers and hyperkalemia for mineralocorticoid receptors antagonists.
Expert consensus document on angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors in cardiovascular diseaseThe Task Force on ACE-inhibitors of the European Society of Cardiology