Nesiritide therapy for decompensated heart failure.

Abstract

Heart failure (HF) remains one of the most common illnesses in the United States, affecting more than 4.7 million people.1 In 1996 nearly 900,000 patients were admitted with a primary diagnosis of HF to US hospitals, and an additional 1.8 million patients were admitted with HF as a secondary diagnosis.2 Thirty-five percent of all patients afflicted with HF are hospitalized at least once a year, resulting in an estimated cost of more than $10 billion to US taxpayers.3 The most common reasons for hospitalization of patients with symptomatic heart failure (left ventricular dysfunction) are dyspnea and fatigue.4 Nesiritide, a novel exogenous B-type natriuretic peptide, is a new class of drug developed to treat decompensated heart failure.