ABSTRACT
To assess whether an inotropic agent may affect quality of life in severe heart failure, a double-blind, placebo-controlled crossover study was performed in 10 patients over three periods of 3 weeks, including an initial control period of 3 weeks and periods on placebo or enoximone, 150 mg t.d.s. Quality of life was assessed by a questionnaire following initial training of patients to evaluate their symptoms after certain stresses, by visual analogue scales of symptoms, and by objective assessments during graded exercise. Daily dyspnoea score decreased from 33.2 +/- 2 (placebo) to 27.7 +/- 4 (enoximone) (P less than 0.01) and daily fatigue score decreased from 14.8 +/- 2.5 (placebo) to 12.6 +/- 2 (enoximone) (P less than 0.05). There were also significant beneficial responses in the mean daily NYHA class and in the duration of a walking test. Self-assessed global quality of life score increased from 2.7 +/- 0.6 (placebo) to 3.6 +/- 0.8 (enoximone) (P less than 0.05). It was concluded that over periods of 3 weeks, enoximone significantly improved self-assessed quality of life.
