Effect of melatonin on heart failure: design for a double-blinded randomized clinical trial.
Study Goal
The researchers aimed to evaluate the effect of oral melatonin on myocardial, skeletal muscle, and metabolic dysfunctions in patients with heart failure with reduced ejection fraction.
Results Summary
The study is ongoing, but it aims to assess changes in echocardiographic indexes, serum biomarkers, and clinical endpoints like mortality and hospitalization. Secondary outcomes include evaluating adverse effects, vascular function, muscle mass, and metabolic markers.
Population
90 outpatients with heart failure and reduced ejection fraction.
Effective Dosage
10 mg tablets of melatonin daily.
Duration
24 weeks.
Interactions
None mentioned.
| Intervention | Direction | Endpoint | Population | Dosage | Impact | Claim # |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
melatonin | decrease | renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system and sympathetic over activity | heart failure (HF) | - | can counteract | #1 |
melatonin | increase | cardiovascular injuries, skeletal muscle weakness, and metabolic abnormalities | patients with HF | - | might have a protective and repairing effect | #2 |
oral melatonin | neutral | myocardial, skeletal muscle, and metabolic dysfunctions | HF | - | aims to evaluate the effect | #3 |
oral melatonin | decrease | lower quality of life and increased morbidity and mortality | these patients | - | leads to | #4 |
10 mg tablets of melatonin | neutral | - | 90 outpatients with HF with reduced ejection fraction | - | receive | #5 |
oral melatonin | neutral | safety | patients with HF | - | might elucidate the safety | #6 |
oral melatonin | increase | well-being | these patients | - | provide some evidence on its effectiveness as an adjunctive therapy to enhance | #7 |
AIMS: Current studies indicate that melatonin can counteract renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system and sympathetic over activity in heart failure (HF) and might have a protective and repairing effect on cardiovascular injuries, skeletal muscle weakness, and metabolic abnormalities, which are common pathological processes in patients with HF. The MeHR trial (Melatonin for Heart Failure with Reduced Ejection Fraction) aims to evaluate the effect of oral melatonin on myocardial, skeletal muscle, and metabolic dysfunctions in HF, which leads to lower quality of life and increased morbidity and mortality in these patients. METHODS AND RESULTS: This is a double-blind randomized clinical trial with two parallel arms of 1:1 allocation, which recruits 90 outpatients with HF with reduced ejection fraction. Participants receive 10 mg tablets of melatonin or placebo for 24 weeks. The primary outcomes are changes in echocardiographic indexes of HF and serum levels of N terminal pro brain natriuretic peptide. Secondary outcome is a composite clinical endpoint score including all-cause mortality, hospitalization for HF, and change in the quality of life during the study. Other outcomes are the evaluation of melatonin attributable adverse effects, flow-mediated vasodilation, skeletal muscle mass, exercise capacity, and serum markers of inflammation, oxidative stress, and metabolism. Statistical analysis will include simple unadjusted analyses for the detection of differences between groups and changes in outcomes and also a generalized linear mixed model to explore potential associations between outcomes and participant characteristics. CONCLUSIONS: The results of this comprehensive study might elucidate the safety of oral melatonin in patients with HF and provide some evidence on its effectiveness as an adjunctive therapy to enhance the well-being of these patients.