Is Sacubitril/Valsartan a Safe and Effective Option in Real World Patients with Mild to Severe Chronic Kidney Disease?

Abstract

Aims: Sacubitril/valsartan has shifted the landscape of heart failure (HF) treatment. As renal function (RF) is often compromised in HF patients, this study aimed to assess the evolution of RF in patients with HF with a reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF) and initiating treatment with sacubitril/valsartan. Methods and results: We present a secondary data analysis of a prospective cohort of HFrEF patients. Inclusion criteria: patients who started sacubitril/valsartan between November 2017 and August 2019, after previous optimal medical therapy, had a New York Heart Association classification of II or III, at least 6 months of follow-up, and an estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) below 90 mL/min/1.73 m2. Main endpoint: annualized change in eGFR. A total of 52 patients met the inclusion criteria. The average eGFR reduced from 54.2 to 52.5 mL/min/1.73 m2, at baseline and last follow-up, respectively. The average eGFR annualized change from baseline decreased 3.1 mL/min/1.73 m2/year without statistical significance (95% confidence interval: −8.7 to 2.5). No subgroup analysis presented a statistically significant annualized change in eGFR. Mean left ventricular ejection fraction increased from 30.4% to 37.9% at last follow-up. Conclusion: This real-world study demonstrated sacubitril/valsartan promoted no major harm in renal function, while maintaining effectiveness in a population of HFrEF patients with mild to severe renal disease.