URMC will lead $27M study into heart failure drugs

ROCHESTER, N.Y. (WROC) — The University of Rochester Medical Center has received $27 million to lead a national study on heart failure.

In a statement posted to its website, URMC said it will lead a large-scale comparison between two heart failure drugs — carvedilol and metoprolol succinate. The goal of this study is to help physicians provide heart failure management for the six million people who live with the disease.

This is the second study URMC is running regarding heart failure care. The first is a comparison between patients who only use beta-blockers and those who use medication and an ICD. That study is also worth $27 million.

“Carvedilol and metoprolol succinate are the main types of beta-blockers that are prescribed for 90 percent of people with this condition to improve survival,” said cardiac electrophysiologic Dr. Mehmet Aktas in a statement. “However, no one has ever studied the differences in outcomes for these two drugs in patients with heart failure who receive implantable cardioverter defibrillators (ICDs).”

The funding for this study comes from the non-profit organization Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute.

URMC will be providing more information about this study at a press conference at 2 p.m. Wednesday.

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