Effect of Short-term Prednisone Therapy on C-reactive Protein in Patients With Acute Heart Failure

NCT05916586 | Completed

• 1 other identifier: CHF202301
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 101
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 3

Brief Summary

This is a multicenter, parallel-group, randomized, open-label, controlled trial. Patients with a diagnosis of acute heart failure (AHF) in the emergency department (ED) or after emergency presentation to hospital will be screened and informed of the study. After signed consent, patients will be randomized into the control group (usual AHF treatment) or intervention group (usual AHF treatment + prednisone). Prednisone will be given for 7 days. Patients will be assessed at days 2, 4 or at discharge if earlier, and at day 7 at hospital visit. If the patient has been discharged before day 7, a follow-up visit will be scheduled at day 7 for endpoints assessment followed by a scheduled hospital visit at day 31 and a telephone follow-up at day 91. Study drug will be dispensed for the patient to take home until day 7.

Conditions

Acute Heart Failure

Keywords

Acute Heart Failure; C-Reactive protein; Inflammation; Prednisone

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

• Change of CRP level

  Change of CRP level, defined by CRP level at day 7 minus CRP level at inclusion.

  7 days

Secondary Outcomes (2)

• WHF adverse event, death, or hospital readmission

  91 days

• Change in quality of life

  7 days

Study Arms (2)

Prednisone + usual care

EXPERIMENTAL

Prednisone tablets, 40 mg once a day orally, for 7 days plus usual treatment for acute heart failure

Drug: Prednisone

Usual care

NO INTERVENTION

Usual treatment for acute heart failure

Interventions

Prednisone DRUG

Prednisone 40 mg orally once a day for 7 days

Prednisone + usual care

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 18 Years - 85 Years
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: No
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

• Age 18 to 85 years of age
• Unplanned ED visit or hospital presentation within the 12 hours prior to Screening with acute or worsening dyspnea and/or orthopnea, and pulmonary congestion on chest X-ray or lung ultrasound.
• All measures from presentation to randomization of systolic blood pressure ≥ 100 mmHg, and of heart rate ≥ 60 bpm.
• Written informed consent to participate in the study.
• Biomarker levels indicative of congestion and inflammation: At Screening, NT-proBNP \> 1,500 pg/mL and CRP \> 20 mg/L
• Patient agrees for follow-up visits at the hospital at day 7 in case of earlier discharge and Day 31.

You may not qualify if:

• Anticipated life expectancy less than 6 months
• Mechanical ventilation (not including CPAP/BIPAP) prior to Screening.
• Significant pulmonary disease contributing substantially to the patients' dyspnea such as FEV1\< 1 liter or need for chronic systemic or non-systemic steroid therapy, or any kind of primary right heart failure such as primary pulmonary hypertension or recurrent pulmonary embolism.
• Uncorrected thyroid disease, active myocarditis, or known amyloid or hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy.
• History of heart transplant or on a transplant list, or using or planned to be implanted with a ventricular assist device.
• Sustained ventricular arrhythmia with syncopal episodes within the 3 months prior to screening that is untreated.
• Presence at screening of any hemodynamically significant valvular stenosis or regurgitation, except mitral or tricuspid regurgitation secondary to left ventricular dilatation, or the presence of any hemodynamically significant obstructive lesion of the left ventricular outflow tract.
• Primary liver disease considered to be life threatening
• Inability to consent, or patient under guardianship measure
• Participation in another intervention trial in the past 30 days
• Anticipated non-adherence to study protocol or follow-up.
• Pregnant or nursing (lactating) women.
• Known hypersensitivity to steroids or constituents of prednisone tablets (excipients)
• Psychotic states not yet controlled by treatment
• Concomitant administration of live vaccines and up to 3 months after end of corticotherapy administration.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Heart Initiative: lead

Study Sites (3)

"Armenia" Republican Medical Center

Yerevan, Armenia

Location

"Mikaelyan" Surgery Institute

Yerevan, Armenia

Location

Erebouni Medical Center

Yerevan, Armenia

Location

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MeSH Terms

Conditions

Inflammation

Interventions

Prednisone

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Pathologic Processes; Pathological Conditions, Signs and Symptoms

Intervention Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Pregnadienediols; Pregnadienes; Pregnanes; Steroids; Fused-Ring Compounds; Polycyclic Compounds

Study Officials

• Yonathan Freund, MD

  Emergency Department, Hôpital Universitaire Pitié-Salpêtrière, AP-HP, Paris, France

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: RANDOMIZED
• Masking: NONE
• Purpose: TREATMENT
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: SPONSOR

Model Details: Parallel-group, comparative, open-label, randomised, controlled trial.

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: June 14, 2023
• First Posted: June 23, 2023
• Study Start: August 11, 2023
• Primary Completion: April 21, 2024
• Study Completion: July 8, 2024
• Last Updated: September 15, 2025

Record last verified: 2025-09

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will not share

Locations

AR (3)