Сhoice of RAAS blocker in the treatment of heart failure in acute myocarditis
Authors: Nesukay E. G. , Kovalenko V. M. , Cherniuk S. V. , Kirichenko R. M. , Titov E.Yu. , Giresh J. J. , Dmitrichenko O. V. , Slyvna A. B. 
Published: May 2024

The aim – to evaluate the effectiveness of sacubitril/valsartan and enalapril in heart failure treatment in patients with acute severe myocarditis with reduced left ventricular ejection fraction based on dynamic analysis of the heart structural and functional changes.Materials and methods. The study is based on the results of examinations of 90 patients with a severe course of acute myocarditis (AM) with reduced ejection fraction (EF) of the left ventricle (LV) – ≤40 %. The patients were divided into two groups: the 1st group included 48 patients who were treated with an angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitor – enalapril as part of heart failure (HF) therapy; the 2nd group included 42 patients with AM who received the sacubitril/valsartan combination instead of enalapril in the complex therapy of HF. All patients underwent a 6-minute walk test, echocardiography (EchoCG) with the speckle-tracking method, and cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (CMR). Examinations were carried out three times: in the 1st month from the onset of AM symptoms before the appointment of drug therapy, after 6 and 12 months of observation. Part of the patients from the 1st group, namely 25 patients (52.1 %) in whom the use of ACE inhibitors proved to be ineffective after six months, was transferred to the combination of sacubitril/valsartan (group 1A).Results and discussion. After six months of treatment, compared to the 1st group, the patients of the 2nd group were distinguished by better indicators of the structural and functional state of the heart, which characterise the contractility and volume of the LV – the values of LV EF and LV longitudinal global systolic strain (LGSS) were higher by 13,7 and 26.2 % respectively, LV end-diastolic volume index (EDVi) was 13.2% lower, as well as a 21.7 % lower number of LV segments in which delayed contrast was detected on cardiac MRI. After six months of taking the sacubitril/valsartan combination in 1A group patients, an improvement in the structural and functional state of the heart was also achieved: the values of LVEF and LGSS increased by 19.2 % and 27.9 %, respectively, and LV EDVi decreased by 19.0 %; the number of LV segments in which delayed enhancement was determined on cardiac MRI decreased by 30.7 %. With the help of regression analysis, it was established the presence of a set of factors that determine the priority of prescribing the sacubitril/valsartan combination as initial therapy in patients with severe myocarditis: presence of reduced LVEF – ≤40 %; pronounced decrease in longitudinal and circular global LV strain – ≤8.5 and ≤9.0 %, respectively; pronounced dilatation of the LV – EDVi ≥102 ml/m2; presence of III or higher HF functional class; presence of delayed enhancement in ≥ 5,0 LV segments according to cardiac MRI data.Conclusions. In patients with a severe course of myocarditis, the sacubitril/valsartan combination prescribed as initial therapy showed higher effectiveness compared to ACE inhibitors in terms of improving contractility and reducing LV dilatation, as well as improving the functional class of heart failure. A complex of factors has been established that prove the expediency of prescribing the sacubitril/valsartan combination as initial therapy for heart failure in patients with acute myocarditis.