Effects of pimobendan in cats with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy and recent congestive heart failure: Results of a prospective, double-blind, randomized, nonpivotal, exploratory field study

Schober, Karsten E.; Rush, John E.; Fuentes, Virginia Luis; Glaus, Tony; Summerfield, Nuala J.; Wright, Kathy; Lehmkuhl, Linda; Wess, Gerhard; Sayer, Margaret P.; Loureiro, Joao; MacGregor, John and Mohren, Nicole (2021): Effects of pimobendan in cats with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy and recent congestive heart failure: Results of a prospective, double-blind, randomized, nonpivotal, exploratory field study. In: Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine, Vol. 35, No. 2: pp. 789-800

Abstract

Background The benefits of pimobendan in the treatment of congestive heart failure (CHF) in cats with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) have not been evaluated prospectively. Hypothesis/Objectives To investigate the effects of pimobendan in cats with HCM and recent CHF and to identify possible endpoints for a pivotal study. We hypothesized that pimobendan would be well-tolerated and associated with improved outcome. Animals Eighty-three cats with HCM and recently controlled CHF: 30 with and 53 without left ventricular outflow tract obstruction. Methods Prospective randomized placebo-controlled double-blind multicenter nonpivotal field study. Cats received either pimobendan (0.30 mg/kg q12h, n = 43), placebo (n = 39), or no medication (n = 1) together with furosemide (<10 mg/kg/d) with or without clopidogrel. The primary endpoint was a successful outcome (ie, completing the 180-day study period without a dose escalation of furosemide). Results The proportion of cats in the full analysis set population with a successful outcome was not different between treatment groups (P = .75). For nonobstructive cats, the success rate was 32% in pimobendan-treated cats versus 18.2% in the placebo group (odds ratio [OR], 2.12;95% confidence interval [CI], 0.54-8.34). For obstructive cats, the success rate was 28.6% and 60% in the pimobendan and placebo groups, respectively (OR, 0.27;95% CI, 0.06-1.26). No difference was found between treatments for the secondary endpoints of time to furosemide dose escalation or death (P = .89). Results were similar in the per-protocol sets. Adverse events in both treatment groups were similar. Conclusions and Clinical Importance In this study of cats with HCM and recent CHF, no benefit of pimobendan on 180-day outcome was identified.

• Item Type: Journal article
• Faculties: Veterinary Medicine
• Subjects: 600 Technology > 610 Medicine and health
• ISSN: 0891-6640
• Language: English