Clinical trial NCT00382863
Conditions: Heart Failure
Keywords: heart failure cardiac support Paracor HeartNet PEERLESS-HF
Sponsor: Paracor Medical, Inc
Start date: 2006-10-01; Completion date: 2012-05-01
Enrollment: 220 participants; Allocation: RANDOMIZED; Intervention model: PARALLEL

Brief summary:
The purpose of this study is to determine if patients in the HeartNet Ventricular Support System with optimal medical and device therapy arm (Treatment group) show statistically significant improvement compared to patients in the optimal medical and device therapy alone arm (Control group) after 6 months of follow-up.

Detailed description:
In the United States alone, more than five million people suffer from heart failure (CHF) and an estimated 400,000 to 700,000 new cases are diagnosed each year. Caused by a variety of cardiac conditions, systolic heart failire (HF) is the end-stage of heart disease where the heart is failing as a pump. Once diagnosed with the disease, less than 50% of the patients live for five years, and less than 25% survive for more than ten years. The number of deaths in the United States from this condition has more than doubled since 1979, averaging more than 250,000 annually.

Paracor Medical, Inc. has developed an elastic prosthetic wrap that is designed to apply a gentle mechanical support to the failing heart. The Implant is a compliant elastic structure that is designed to conform to the epicardial surface of the right and left ventricles. It supports the heart throughout the cardiac cycle and was designed to offload the ventricles and reduce wall stress.

The objective of this clinical trial is to evaluate the safety and efficacy of the HeartNet Ventricular Support System with optimal medical and device therapy (Treatment group) when compared to optimal medical and device therapy (i.e., medications, cardiac resynchronisation therapy, pacemaker) alone (Control group) as treatments for patients with heart failure.

Efficacy of the HeartNet Ventricular Support System in the Treatment group compared to the optimal medical and device therapy Control group will be evaluated based upon cardiopulmonary tests (Peak VO2), six (6) minute walk distance and quality of life assessment, as measured by the Minnesota Living with Heart Failure (MLWHF) questionnaire.

Safety of the HeartNet Ventricular Support System in the Treatment group compared to the Control group will be evaluated based on the all-cause mortality rate.

Paracor Medical intends to submit data obtained in this clinical trial to support a Pre-Market Approval Application to the United States Food and Drug Administration.

Arms: arm 1: HeartNet and Optimal Medical/Device Therapy (e.g., medications and cardiac resynchronisation therapy) arm 2: Optimal Medical/Device Therapy alone (e.g., medications and/or cardiac resynchronisation therapy) (Note: For the purpose of the PEERLESS-HF study, optimal medical therapy is defined as the use of angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors and Beta blockers in the highest tolerable doses for three months prior to study enrollment, and Optimal device therapy is defined as cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) or cardiac resynchronization therapy-defibrillator (CRT-D) for at least three months prior to study enrollment, when indicated.)
Interventions: intervention 1: HeartNet Ventricular Support System intervention 2: Optimal Medical/Device Therapy
Intervention descriptions: intervention 1: The HeartNet Implant is placed on the epicardial surface of the heart surrounding both the left and right ventricles. intervention 2: Optimal Medical/Device Therapy - For the purpose of the PEERLESS-HF study, optimal medical therapy is defined as the use of ACE inhibitors and Beta blockers in the highest tolerable doses for three months prior to study enrollment, and Optimal device therapy is defined as CRT or CRT-D for at least three months prior to study enrollment, when indicated.

Protocol documents: