Top HF news from 2022: Firsts in xenotransplantation, FDA approves empagliflozin and more

Healio and Cardiology Today have aggregated a list of the top headlines of 2022 in heart failure and transplantation.

Readers were most interested in the xenotransplantation of genetically modified pig hearts into human recipients; the first partial heart transplant in a newborn with truncus arteriosus; an FDA panel declining to back the approval of omecamtiv mecarbil; and more.

Genetically engineered pig hearts successfully transplanted into two brain-dead humans

A team at NYU Langone Health successfully transplanted two genetically engineered pig hearts into recently deceased humans in June and July, part of an effort to create a xenotransplantation protocol for people with heart disease. Read more

World’s first partial heart transplant completed in newborn with truncus arteriosus

Duke Health announced successful completion of the world’s first partial heart transplant, using living arteries and valves from a donor heart that were fused onto the existing heart of a newborn. Read more

First human recipient of genetically modified pig heart dies

A man who became the first in the world to receive a genetically modified pig’s heart died 2 months after the procedure. Read more

FDA panel declines to support approval of omecamtiv mecarbil

An FDA advisory committee voted 8-3 against supporting the approval of the HF drug omecamtiv mecarbil (Cytokinetics), with panelists citing a small observed benefit for a limited group of patients. Read more

FDA approves empagliflozin to reduce CV death, HF hospitalization in HFpEF

The FDA approved an expanded indication for the SGLT2 inhibitor empagliflozin to reduce the risk for CV death and HF hospitalization in adults with HF with reduced or preserved ejection fraction. Read more

Bereavement may increase HF mortality risk

The death of a close family member was associated with increased risk for death among people with HF, with risk highest during the first week after the loss, according to findings from a Swedish register-based study.

FDA approves mavacamten, first treatment for obstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy

The FDA approved mavacamten for the treatment of symptomatic, obstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, the first cardiac myosin inhibitor to be permitted for use in the United States, Bristol Myers Squibb announced. Read more

HF ‘most expensive’ comorbidity, exceeding $22 billion per year

An additional $22.3 billion is spent nationally on HF-related medical services each year, with the total annual expenditure for adults with HF approaching $180 billion, according to an analysis of Medical Expenditure Panel Survey data. Read more

HF may be tied to cancer incidence, mortality in those 50 years and older

HF may be associated with cancer incidence as well as risk for cancer-related mortality, especially among individuals aged 50 to 70 years, according to new data published in JACC: CardioOncology. Read more

Smartphone speech analysis detects worsening heart failure prior to an event

A novel speech analysis system was able to detect impending heart failure events in ambulatory patients with congestive HF more than 3 weeks ahead of time. Read more