Thyroid hormone and thyroid hormone analogues in the treatment of heart failure

The thyroid hormone analogue DITPA is a promising potential new treatment for heart failure. Although the mechanism of action is incompletely determined, it is clear that DITPA improves systolic as well as diastolic function. It is also clear that the effects of DITPA are intrinsic to the muscle and not the result of changes in the structure or geometry of the left ventricle. On the basis of these experimental studies, we applied to the USA Food and Drug Administration for an Investigational New Drug application to study the use of DITPA in patients. These studies are currently in progress. While we await the outcome of these clinical trials, it is important to emphasize that even if the end-point is not a new drug to treat heart failure, our investigations are based on a systematic evaluation integrating biochemistry and physiology. We believe that this is the way to approach the problem of developmental pharmacology.