CoQ10 for CHF When the heart sustains injury that weakens its pumping ability congestive heart failure can develop. Fluid builds up in the lungs and lower extremities, the heart enlarges, and many symptoms develop, including severe fatigue, difficulty breathing while lying down, and altered brain function.
People with CHF have significantly lower levels of CoQ10 in heart muscle cells than healthy people. Several double-blind studies have found that CoQ10 supplements can markedly improve symptoms and objective measurements of heart function when they are taken along with conventional medication. In the largest of these studies, 641 individuals with moderate to severe congestive heart failure were monitored for 1 year. Half were given 2 mg per kilogram body weight of CoQ10 daily; the rest were given placebo. Standard therapy was continued in both groups. The participants treated with CoQ10 experienced a significant reduction in the severity of their symptoms. No such improvement was seen in the placebo group. The people who took CoQ10 also had significantly fewer hospitalizations for heart failure. -- http://www.chfpatients.com/text/coq10.txt -- Weber C, Jakobsen TS, Mortensen SA, et al. Antioxidative effect of dietary coenzyme Q10 in human blood plasma. Internat J Vit Nutr Res 1994;64:311-15. Open Label and Long Term Congestive Heart Failure Trials Dr. Yuichi Yamamura published an excellent review of all early Japanese trials prior to 1984. By mid 1980's it became apparent that CoQ10 was safe and effective in the short-term treatment of patients with heart failure. Several long-term trials were undertaken to determine if this effect would be sustained and to determine long-term safety. In 1985, Mortensen et al. observed sustained benefit and safety in idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathy on 100 mg per day of CoQ10. In 1990, we published our observations on 126 patients with dilated cardiomyopathy followed for six years, again noting sustained benefit with remarkable long-term safety and lack of side effects. In 1994, Baggio et al. published the largest open trial in heart failure involving 2,664 patients treated with up to 150 mg of CoQ10 per day, again noting significant benefit and lack of toxicity. Also, in 1994, we published observations on 424 patients with a broader spectrum of myocardial disease including ischemic cardiomyopathy, dilated cardiomyopathy, primary diastolic dysfunction, hypertensive heart disease, and valvular heart disease Patients were treated with an average of 240 mg of CoQ10 per day and followed for up to eight years with mean follow-up of 18 months. We observed significant improvement in NYHA functional classification, improvement in measurements of myocardial function, an average of 50% reduction in the requirement for concomitant cardiovascular drug therapy, and a complete lack of toxicity. Myocardial function became measurably improved within one month with maximal improvement usually obtained by six months and this improvement appears to be sustained in the majority of patients. The withdrawal of CoQ10 therapy resulted in a measurable decline in myocardial function within one month and a return to pretreatment measurements within three to six months. This return to baseline myocardial function after withdrawal of CoQ10 therapy was also observed by Mortensen et al. -- Biofactors. 1999;9(2-4):273-84. Overview of the use of CoQ10 in cardiovascular disease. Langsjoen PH, Langsjoen AM. The clinical experience in cardiology with CoQ10 includes studies on congestive heart failure, ischemic heart disease, hypertensive heart disease, diastolic dysfunction of the left ventricle, and reperfusion injury as it relates to coronary artery bypass graft surgery. The CoQ10-lowering effect of HMG-CoA reductase inhibitors and the potential adverse consequences are of growing concern. Supplemental CoQ10 alters the natural history of cardiovascular illnesses and has the potential for prevention of cardiovascular disease through the inhibition of LDL cholesterol oxidation and by the maintenance of optimal cellular and mitochondrial function throughout the ravages of time and internal and external stresses. The attainment of higher blood levels of CoQ10 (> 3.5 micrograms/ml) with the use of higher doses of CoQ10 appears to enhance both the magnitude and rate of clinical improvement. In this communication, 34 controlled trials and several open-label and long-term studies on the clinical effects of CoQ10 in cardiovascular diseases are reviewed. -- Hashiba K, Kuramoto K, Ishimi Z, et al. Heart. 1972;4:1579-1589. Cited by: Werbach MR. Nutritional Influences on Illness [book on CD-ROM]. Tarzana, Calif: Third Line Press; 1998. -- Hofman-Bang C, Rehnquist N, Swedberg K, et al. Coenzyme Q10 as an adjunctive treatment of congestive heart failure. J Am Coll Cardiol. 1992;19:216A. Regards, Catherine -- The silver-list is a moderated forum for discussion of colloidal silver. Instructions for unsubscribing may be found at: http://silverlist.org To post, address your message to: [email protected] Silver-list archive: http://escribe.com/health/thesilverlist/index.html List maintainer: Mike Devour <[email protected]>
