Iron Deficiency in Heart Failure: An Overview

Abstract

Iron deficiency is an extremely common comorbidity in patients with heart failure, affecting up to 50% of all ambulatory patients. It is associated with reduced exercise capacity and physical well-being and reduced quality of life. Cutoff values have been identified for diagnosing iron deficiency in heart failure with reduced ejection fraction as serum ferritin, <100 μg/l, or ferritin, 100 to 300 μg/l, with transferrin saturation of <20%. Oral iron products have been shown to have little efficacy in heart failure, where the preference is intravenous iron products. Most clinical studies have been performed using ferric carboxymaltose with good efficacy in terms of improvements in 6-min walk test distance, peak oxygen consumption, quality of life, and improvements in New York Heart Association functional class. Data from meta-analyses also suggest beneficial effects for hospitalization rates for heart failure and reduction in cardiovascular mortality rates. A prospective trial to investigate effects on morbidity and mortality is currently ongoing. This paper highlights current knowledge of the pathophysiology of iron deficiency in heart failure, its prevalence and clinical impact, and its possible treatment options.

Keywords: ferric carboxymaltose; heart failure; iron deficiency; treatment.