ABSTRACT
Heart failure (HF) is a chronic and complex disease entity with an enormous morbidity and mortality. Many of the therapies used in the management of HF were developed decades ago, but recently more novel monitoring and therapeutic strategies have emerged. The employment of these strategies may reduce morbidity and mortality in patients with HF. This article reviews the epidemiology of HF and some of the novel strategies developed to assess risk and monitor these challenging patients. It also discusses the evidence behind some of the newer treatments available that are recently included in the HF management guidelines. Various devices used in the treatment of HF, some of which remain investigational, are also discussed. Novel strategies for remote monitoring and new pharmacologic therapies may be useful in improving morbidity and mortality in patients with HF.
Subject(s)
Cardiac Catheterization , Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy , Cardiovascular Agents/therapeutic use , Heart Failure/therapy , Transcutaneous Electric Nerve Stimulation , Cardiac Catheterization/adverse effects , Cardiac Catheterization/mortality , Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy/adverse effects , Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy/mortality , Cardiovascular Agents/adverse effects , Chronic Disease , Diffusion of Innovation , Heart Failure/diagnosis , Heart Failure/mortality , Heart Failure/physiopathology , Humans , Recovery of Function , Risk Factors , Transcutaneous Electric Nerve Stimulation/adverse effects , Transcutaneous Electric Nerve Stimulation/mortality , Treatment OutcomeABSTRACT
PURPOSE: A randomized controlled trial study was performed to evaluate the efficacy of transcutaneous tibial nerve stimulation (TTNS) and sham TTNS, in patients with Parkinson disease (PD) with lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS). DESIGN: Randomized controlled trial. SUBJECTS AND SETTINGS: Thirteen patients with a diagnosis of PD and bothersome LUTS were randomly allocated to one of the following groups: Group I: TTNS group (n = 8) and group II: Sham group (n = 5). Both groups attended twice a week during 5 weeks; each session lasted 30 minutes. METHODS: Eight patients received TTNS treatment and 5 subjects allocated to group II were managed with sham surface electrodes that delivered no electrical stimulation. Assessments were performed before and after the treatment; they included a 3-day bladder diary, Overactive Bladder Questionnaire (OAB-V8), and the International Consultation on Incontinence Quality of Life Questionnaire Short Form (ICIQ-SF), and urodynamic evaluation. RESULTS: Following 5 weeks of treatment, patients allocated to TTNS demonstrated statistically significant reductions in the number of urgency episodes (P = .004) and reductions in nocturia episodes (P < .01). Participants allocated to active treatment also showed better results after treatment in the OAB-V8 and ICIQ-SF scores (P < .01, respectively). Urodynamic testing revealed that patients in the active treatment group showed improvements in intravesical volume at strong desire to void (P < .05) and volume at urgency (P < .01) when compared to subjects in the sham treatment group. CONCLUSION: These findings suggest that TTNS is effective in the treatment of LUTS in patients with PD, reducing urgency and nocturia episodes and improving urodynamic parameters as well as symptom scores measured by the OAB-V8 and health-related quality-of-life scores measured by the ICIQ-SF.
