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Use of Levosimendan in Patients with Pulmonary Hypertension: What is the Current Evidence?

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Abstract

Pulmonary hypertension, defined as an increase in mean arterial pressure > 20 mmHg, is a chronic and progressive condition with high mortality and morbidity. Drug therapy of patients with pulmonary hypertension is based on the distinctive pathophysiologic aspect that characterizes the different groups. However, recently, levosimendan, a calcium-sensitizing agent with inotropic, pulmonary vasodilator, and cardioprotective properties, has been shown to be an effective and safe therapeutic strategy for patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension (in addition to specific drugs) and pulmonary hypertension associated with left heart disease (as possible treatment). This review provides a comprehensive overview of the current evidence on the use of levosimendan in patients with pulmonary hypertension.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Heart Failure Unit, Department of Cardiology, AORN dei Colli-Monaldi Hospital Naples, Via Leonardo Bianchi 1, 80100, Naples, Italy

    Daniele Masarone & Giuseppe Pacileo

  2. Department of Cardiology, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Smidt Heart Institute, Los Angeles, CA, USA

    Michelle Kittleson

  3. Division of Cardiology, Department of Medicine, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC, USA

    Piero Pollesello

  4. Critical Care, Orion Pharma, Espoo, Finland

    Ryan J. Tedford

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  1. Daniele Masarone
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Correspondence to Daniele Masarone.

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No external funding was used in the preparation of the article.

Conflicts of Interest/Competing Interests

Ryan J. Tedford was a funded site principal investigator for the HELP study. Piero Polesello is a full-time employee of Orion Pharma, where levosimendan was discovered and developed. Daniele Masarone, Michelle Kittleson, and Giuseppe Pacileo have no conflicts of interest that are directly relevant to the content of this article.

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DM and GP: Conceptualization. DM and GP: Writing - Original Draft. MK, RT and PP: Writing - Review & Editing.

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Masarone, D., Kittleson, M., Pollesello, P. et al. Use of Levosimendan in Patients with Pulmonary Hypertension: What is the Current Evidence?. Drugs 83, 195–201 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40265-022-01833-w

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