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CLINICAL STUDY

Prospective crossover comparison of carvedilol and metoprolol in patients with chronic heart failure

Christoph Maack, MD^*, Thomas Elter, MD, Georg Nickenig, MD^*, Karl LaRosee, MD, Marina Crivaro, MD, Alexander Stäblein, MD, Henrike Wuttke, MD and Michael Böhm, MD^*

^* Medizinische Klinik und Poliklinik, Innere Medizin III, Universitätskliniken des Saarlandes, Homburg, Germany
Klinik III für Innere Medizin, Universität zu Köln; Köln, Germany
Institut für Experimentelle und Klinische Pharmakologie und Toxikologie; Friedrich-Alexander Universität; Erlangen, Germany

Manuscript received January 22, 2001; revised manuscript received May 17, 2001, accepted June 11, 2001.

Reprint requests and correspondence: Dr. Christoph Maack, Medizinische Klinik und Poliklinik, Innere Medizin III, Universität des Saarlandes, 66421 Homburg/Saar, Germany
maack{at}med-in.uni-saarland.de

OBJECTIVES

This study investigates the effects of a change of beta-adrenergic blocking agent treatment from metoprolol to carvedilol and vice versa in patients with heart failure (HF).

BACKGROUND

Beta-blockers improve ventricular function and prolong survival in patients with HF. It has recently been suggested that carvedilol has more pronounced effects on left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) compared with metoprolol. It is uncertain whether a change from one beta-blocker to the other is safe and leads to any change of left ventricular function.

METHODS

Forty-four patients with HF due to ischemic (n = 17) or idiopathic cardiomyopathy (n = 27) that had responded well to long-term treatment with either metoprolol (n = 20) or carvedilol (n = 24) were switched to an equivalent dose of the respective other beta-blocker. Before and six months after crossover of treatment, echocardiography, radionuclide ventriculography and dobutamine stress echocardiography were performed.

RESULTS

Six months after crossover of beta-blocker treatment, LVEF had further improved with both carvedilol and metoprolol (carvedilol: 32 ± 3% to 36 ± 4%; metoprolol: 27 ± 4% to 30 ± 5%; both p < 0.05 vs. baseline), without interindividual differences. There were no changes in either New York Heart Association functional class or any other hemodynamic parameters at rest. Dobutamine stress echocardiography revealed a more pronounced increase of heart rate after dobutamine infusion in metoprolol- compared with carvedilol-treated patients. After dobutamine infusion, LVEF increased in the carvedilol- but not in the metoprolol-treated group.

CONCLUSIONS

When switching treatment from one beta-blocker to the other, improvement of LVEF in patients with HF is maintained. Despite similar long-term effects on hemodynamics at rest, beta-adrenergic responsiveness is different in both treatments.

Abbreviations and Acronyms   betaARK1 = beta-adrenergic receptor kinase 1   COMET = Carvedilol Or Metoprolol European Trial   DSE = dobutamine stress echocardiography   EDD = end-diastolic diameter   ESD = end-systolic diameter   HF = heart failure   LV = left ventricle or left ventricular   LVEF = left ventricular ejection fraction   NYHA = New York Heart Association   PCR = polymerase chain reaction   RNV = radionuclide ventriculography   Vcfc = heart rate corrected velocity of circumferential shortening

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