A NEW drug may help repair failing hearts.

Major improvements were seen in patients treated with the experimental drug cimaglermin following heart failure.

Researchers say the drug may help restore cardiac function after heart failure which is among the leading causes of death worldwide.

Doctors say a significant portion of heart failure patients – particularly those with severe left ventricular systolic dysfunction – don’t sufficiently respond to current medical therapy.

Researchers examined the safety and efficacy of a single infusion of cimaglermin, which acts as a growth factor for the heart, helping the structural, metabolic and contractile elements of the heart to repair itself following injury. The study enrolled 40 heart failure patients who were taking optimal medical therapy for at least three months prior to the trial.

The findings showed, compared to patients who received a placebo, patients who received a high dose of cimaglermin had a sustained increase in left ventricular ejection fraction, or pumping capacity, through 90 days after dosing, with the maximum increase reached after four weeks.

Dr Douglas Mann, editor-in-chief of JACC Basic to Translational Science, said: “Although the results of the study must be regarded as provisional because of the small numbers of patients, the results of this study are nonetheless very exciting.”