Effects of early decrease in oxidative stress after medical therapy in patients with class IV congestive heart failure

It has been reported that patients with congestive heart failure (CHF) have increased breath pentane content, conjugated diene levels, and plasma malondialdehyde (MDA) levels, an indirect marker of lipid peroxidation.(1-3) Ghatak et al(4) found that patients with chronic CHF had increased MDA and superoxide levels, which correlated with the severity of the CHF. Low glutathione levels and superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity have also been reported.(5,6) There have been no studies in human refractory CHF to evaluate the impact of acute intensive medical therapy on oxidative stress status and antioxidant enzyme activity. We determined the plasma levels of MDA, SOD, catalase (CAT), and glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) activities before and after therapeutic intervention in patients with chronic advanced CHF and refractory symptoms (New York Heart Association functional class IV).