Omega-3s Help Some Heart Failure Patients

An article published in the Lancet and presented at the European Society for Cardiology meeting has shown the effectiveness of omega-3 fatty acids in people with chronic heart failure. The large study, called GISSI-HF, was conducted at 350 cardiology sites in Italy.

Patients with chronic heart failure were given either 1 gram of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) in a capsule or a matching placebo capsule, once daily. There were approximately 3,500 patients in each group. The follow-up period averaged almost 4 years.

27% of the PUFA group died, compared with 29% of those in the placebo group. When attention was focused on cardiovascular deaths or hospitalizations, the relative numbers were 57% vs. 59%. When one uses the numbers-needed-to-treat analysis (NNT), it was found that 56 patients needed to receive omega-3s for 4 years to avoid one death, or 44 to avoid one cardiovascular event like death or hospitalization. These may not be very impressive numbers, unless you happen to be the “one” in either case.

It’s important to realize that there were no serious adverse effects of PUFA treatment. The same investigators had shown that PUFA treatment can reduce the risk of major cardiovascular events after a heart attack. Maybe more of us should consider popping fish-oil capsules or, better, eating more fish.