Heart failure treatment and serum carnitines in HFpEF and HFrEF with or without hypertension - a pilot study

The ratio of serum acylcarnitines to free carnitines (AC/FC) reflects impaired cardiomyocyte β-oxidization. The effect of heart failure (HF) treatment on AC/FC remained unclear. This pilot study retrospectively examined treatment-induced AC/FC changes in patients with HF with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) and HF with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF) in 148 consecutive inpatients undergoing echocardiography and carnitine measurement at admission and discharge. Symptomatic ACCF/AHA HF stage C/D patients (HFpEF, n = 40; HErEF, n = 24) received standard medical therapy and comprehensive cardiac rehabilitation. At admission, AC/FC levels in HFpEF and HFrEF were significantly higher than in asymptomatic stage A/B (n = 84), decreasing to comparable levels at discharge. AC/FC reduction was associated with improvement of left ventricular ejection fraction through HF treatment in HFpEF, particularly in HFpEF with hypertension, but not in HFrEF. Large-scale, multicenter prospective studies with precise cardiac function assessments are essential to validate the preliminary findings and to clarify the underlying pathophysiological mechanisms.