Use of meldonium in the combination treatment of patients with heart failure in the early post-infarction period

AIM: To evaluate the impact of 10-14-day intravenous administration of meldonium as part of combination therapy in patients with chronic heart failure in the early post-infarction period on the recovery period, structural and functional parameters, and heart rate variability (HRV)/MATERIAL AND METHODS: The investigation enrolled 60 patients (men and women) aged 45 to 75 years at weeks 3-4 after post-myocardial infarction with symptoms of Functional Class II-III heart failure. All the patients underwent 24-hour electrochocardiography monitoring, cardiac echocardiography, and HRV study. After dividing the patients into 2 groups, Group 1 (a study group) (n=30) was given intravenous meldonium (idrinol) 1000 mg/day in addition to the basic therapy of coronary heart disease. The patients in the study and control (Group 2; n=30) groups were at baseline matched for age, gender, disease severity, and basic therapy pattern/RESULTS: Following 10-14 days of treatment, both groups showed clinical improvement and the favorable changes in cardiac structural and functional parameters and HRV values, which were more pronounced in the patients receiving meldonium/CONCLUSION: The patients with CHF using meldonium as part of combination therapy in the early post-infarction period were observed to have clinical improvement, a significant reduction in the rate of angina attacks and in the need for nitrates, a decrease in the number of arrhythmic and ischemic episodes, and favorable changes in cardiac structural and functional parameters and HRV values.

meldonium, early post-infarction period, chronic heart failure, anti-ischemic and anti-anginal effect, cardiac structural and functional parameters, heart rate variability