Effects of Empagliflozin on Diuresis and Renal Function in Patients With Acute Decompensated Heart Failure

Heart failure is the most common hospital admission diagnosis and shows increasing incidence and prevalence in Germany, the United States and worldwide. Improvements in the primary treatment conditions for e.g. myocardial infarction and reduced primary mortality has resulted in an increasing group of patients with secondary cardiac abnormalities including chronic heart failure. Progressive cardiac dysfunction and failure are associated with exercise intolerance, volume retention, nocturia, dyspnoea among others. The most severe progression of heart failure is cardiac decompensation (also called: acute heart failure) and cardiogenic shock. Volume retention, abnormal renal function and diuretic resistance are hallmarks of this clinical phenotype. Currently, the only available treatment is diuresis through various combinations of diuretics and the addition of cardiac inotropes when cardiac hypoperfusion is documented. Patients with acute decompensated heart failure (ADHF) often develop a state of diuretic resistance characterized by a need of rising dosages of diuretics for adequate diuresis and urine production. ADHF patients also show metabolic abnormalities including insulin resistance or type 2 diabetes mellitus. Empagliflozin is a potent and selective inhibitor of the sodium glucose cotransporter 2 (SGLT2) used in the treatment of type 2 diabetes. By inhibiting SGLT2, empagliflozin reduces renal glucose reabsorption and increases urinary glucose excretion. In addition to reducing hyperglycaemia, empagliflozin is associated with osmotic diuresis, reductions in weight and blood pressure without increases in heart rate, and has favourable effects on markers of arterial stiffness and vascular resistance. The investigators propose a single center exploratory study to test the hypothesis that the application of empagliflozin in addition to standard diuretic regimens increases urine output, decreases the need for further acceleration of diuretic regimens, and positiv