Safety and efficacy of a novel calcium sensitizer, levosimendan, in patients with left ventricular failure due to an acute myocardial infarction. A randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind study (RUSSLAN).

AIMS: To evaluate the safety and efficacy of levosimendan in patients with left ventricular failure complicating acute myocardial infarction.

METHODS AND RESULTS: Levosimendan at different doses (0.1-0.4 microg x kg(-1) x min(-1)) or placebo were administered intravenously for 6h to 504 patients in a randomised, placebo-controlled, double-blind study. The primary end-point was hypotension or myocardial ischaemia of clinical significance adjudicated by an independent Safety Committee. Secondary end-points included risk of death and worsening heart failure, symptoms of heart failure and all-cause mortality. The incidence of ischaemia and/or hypotension was similar in all treatment groups (P=0.319). A higher frequency of ischaemia and/or hypotension was only seen in the highest levosimendan dose group. Levosimendan-treated patients experienced lower risk of death and worsening heart failure than patients receiving placebo, during both the 6h infusion (2.0% vs 5.9%; P=0.033) and over 24h (4.0% vs 8.8%; P=0.044). Mortality was lower with levosimendan compared with placebo at 14 days (11.7% vs 19.6%; hazard ratio 0.56 [95% CI 0.33-0.95];P =0.031) and the reduction was maintained at the 180-day retrospective follow-up (22.6% vs 31.4%; 0.67 [0.45-1.00],P =0.053).

CONCLUSION: s Levosimendan at doses 0.1-0.2 microg x kg(-1) x min(-1) did not induce hypotension or ischaemia and reduced the risk of worsening heart failure and death in patients with left ventricular failure complicating acute myocardial infarction.