title: The Role of Omega-3 Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids in Heart Failure: A Meta-Analysis of Randomised Controlled Trials.
abstract: Many new clinical trials about the effect of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) in heart failure (HF) patients have shown inconsistent results. Therefore, a meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials (RCTs) was performed to determine the benefits of omega-3 PUFAs in HF patients. Articles were obtained from PubMed, EMBASE, and the Cochrane Library. RCTs comparing omega-3 PUFAs with placebo for HF were included. Two reviewers independently extracted the data from the selected publications. TheI² statistic was used to assess heterogeneity. The pooled mean difference and associated 95% confidence intervals were calculated, and a fixed or random-effects model was used for the meta-analysis. A total of nine RCTs involving 800 patients were eligible for inclusion. Compared with patients taking placebo, HF patients who received omega-3 PUFAs experienced decreased brain natriuretic peptide levels and serum norepinephrine levels. Although the left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) and clinical outcomes (Tei index, peak oxygen consumption) did not improve, subgroup analysis showed that the LVEF increased in dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) patients. Overall, omega-3 PUFA supplements might be beneficial in HF patients, especially in DCM patients, but further studies are needed to confirm these benefits.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing 400010, China. w2321@eyou.com.
authors.forename: Chunbin
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing 400010, China. xbndan@163.com.
authors.forename: Bo
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Xiong
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing 400010, China. dr_huangjing@163.com.
authors.forename: Jing
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Huang
mesh_terms: D002311:Cardiomyopathy, Dilated / Q000188:drug therapy*; D016208:Databases, Factual; D019587:Dietary Supplements; D015525:Fatty Acids, Omega-3 / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D006333:Heart Failure / Q000188:drug therapy*; D006801:Humans; D020097:Natriuretic Peptide, Brain / Q000097:blood; D009638:Norepinephrine / Q000097:blood; D016032:Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic; D018570:Risk Assessment; D016277:Ventricular Function, Left
chemical_list: D015525:Fatty Acids, Omega-3; D020097:Natriuretic Peptide, Brain; D009638:Norepinephrine
keywords: brain natriuretic peptide; heart failure; meta-analysis; omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids