Levosimendan, a novel myofilament calcium sensitizer, allows weaning of parenteral inotropic therapy in patients with severe congestive heart failure

Twenty-four patients with advanced congestive heart failure (CHF) who were dependent on intravenous inotropic support were enrolled in a pilot study to test the ability of oral levosimendan to facilitate weaning of patients from parenteral inotropes. Twenty patients were successfully weaned from intravenous inotropes and remained off these agents for a minimum of 10 days (the primary endpoint of the study). Seven patients were maintained on oral levosimendan for >90 days. The preliminary data, obtained from a population with extremely severe CHF, suggest that oral levosimendan may be used instead of intravenous inotropic support in CHF patients who are dependent on parenteral inotropes.