Are there any benefits from prescribing a cardiac cytoprotector to enhance the quality of life in patients with coronary heart disease and chronic heart failure?

Introduction. Type 2 diabetes (T2D) increases the risk of developing cardiovascular diseases, which leads to a high mortality in this category of patients. Issues regarding the prevention of the onset and progression of coronary heart disease (CHD) and chronic heart failure (CHF) in patients with T2D and/or metabolic syndrome (MS) are still not fully understood. The use of metabolic drugs with cardioprotective effects, in particular Mildronate®, is one of the possibilities to improve the effectiveness of combination treatment of CHD and CHF.Aim. To study the effect of Mildronate® on the quality of life (QoL) of patients with CHD and CHF, suffering from T2D and/or MS.Materials and methods. A total of 2.084 patients with co-occurring two (or more) disorders: obesity, type 2 diabetes, angina pectoris, CHT, and CHF were included in the INDICOR observational study conducted in real-life clinical practice settings. Group 1 received therapy with disease-modifying agents prescribed due to CHD and T2D; Group 2 received Mildronate® at a dose of 1000 mg per day in addition to the same therapy. The studied lab test results were assessed at baseline and 42 days of therapy.Results. A 42-day course of therapy in patients receiving Mildronate® at a dose of 1000 mg per day in addition to disease-modifying therapy (DMT) contributed to a percentage increase in the number of patients with CHD, FC (functional class) I angina pectoris (Δ,% + 63%, p < 0.001 ) as compared to the control group with no significant changes (Δ,% + 7%, p > 0.5). A significant increase in the number of patients with FC I CHF was recorded in Group 2 (from 23.5 to 42.1%, Δ,% + 79%) as compared to Group 1, where no significant changes were detected (22.7 to 23.7%, Δ,% + 4%). The QoL in patients with CHF based on data collected using the Minnesota Questionnaire and QoL in patients with CHD based on data collected using the Seattle Questionnaire significantly improved in the groups that received Mildronate® in addition to DMT, as compared with the group of patients who were only on DMT.Conclusion. Results from the Seattle and Minnesota questionnaires showed that the use of Mildronate® as part of combination therapy in patients with CHD and CHF, suffering from T2D and/or MS, contributed to a significant reduction in the frequency of angina attacks and lowering angina FC, CHF FC, and also enhanced the quality of life in this category of patients.