Beta-Blockers for Heart Failure

Beta-blockers are a class of drugs used to control symptoms of Reference heart failure Opens New Window that are made worse by certain hormones called Reference catecholamines Opens New Window. The body releases these hormones as part of its Reference response to heart failure. For this and other reasons, beta-blockers have been shown to be effective for treating most people who have heart failure.

Beta-blockers have a variety of effects throughout the body. They are used to treat heart disease that causes chest pain, high blood pressure, Reference heart attacks Opens New Window, and Reference cardiomyopathy and irregular, rapid heartbeats (arrhythmia). Beta-blockers are also used to prevent migraine headaches, treat tremors, and control anxiety.

• Beta-blockers may work by slowing the heart rate, which allows the left ventricle (the main pumping chamber of the heart) to fill more completely.
• Some of these medicines may also help open or widen blood vessels in the body. This makes them especially useful in some people with certain forms of heart failure who may also have high blood pressure.

Bisoprolol, carvedilol, and metoprolol are some of the beta-blockers that have been tested for use in the treatment of heart failure.

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