Clinical Experts Discuss Fluid Management Strategies in Critically Ill COVID-19 Patients during CHF Solutions Webinar
June 18 2020 - 09:29AM
CHF Solutions (Nasdaq: CHFS), a medical device company dedicated to
improving the lives of patients suffering from fluid overload,
announces key conclusions from yesterday’s webinar during which
experts in fluid management and critical care provided their
perspectives. The webinar highlighted the recent publication:
SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) and intravascular volume management
strategies in the critically ill.1 and the role of ultrafiltration
in the treatment of patients with COVID-19.
The webinar was moderated by Ravindra Mehta, MD, Profession of
Clinical Medicine (Emeritus), Division of Nephrology-Hypertension,
Department of Medicine, University of California-San Diego School
of Medicine. The panelists were Peter A. McCullough, MD,
Consultant Cardiologist and Vice Chief of Medicine, Baylor
University Medical Center; Principal Faculty, Internal Medicine,
Texas A & M University Health Sciences Center and Claudio
Ronco, MD, Full Professor of Nephrology, Department of Medicine,
University of Padova; Director, Department of Nephrology Dialysis
& Transplantation, International Renal Research Institute
(IRRIV), San Bortolo Hospital in Vicenza, Italy.
“The vast majority of patients after the initial resuscitative
phase are globally volume overloaded,” McCullough said. “In
at-risk patients, start ultrafiltration early and that may make the
situation more favorable for the patients to have a continued
response to diuretics and not to wait too long where they are too
sick and they are too far behind on fluid balance. These patients
really don’t have any margin.”
Additional clinically important observations made during the
webinar include:
- A significant number of COVID-19 patients present with renal
dysfunction, of which a large proportion have associated
cardiopulmonary complications (cardio-renal syndrome). A
particularly important constellation of findings is right
ventricular dysfunction and pulmonary hypertension, which can
contribute to significant fluid overload.
- Another complicating factor in many critically ill
COVID-19-infected patients is cytokine storm and associated
hemodynamic instability, which frequently necessitates aggressive
hemodynamic support. Large fluid resuscitation volumes may
lead to severe fluid overload, even if hemodynamic stability is
eventually achieved.
- While some patients who are relatively young and free of
underlying comorbidities may respond well to diuretics, others may
be diuretic-resistant. In such patients, early transition
from diuretics to ultrafiltration may facilitate volume management
and lead to a more favorable response, including improvement in
respiratory function.
- The constraints placed on caregivers due to COVID-19 limit
direct patient contact and render invasive volume assessments more
difficult. In this environment, cumulative fluid balance is
an important parameter upon which clinicians may have to rely
heavily to make treatment decisions. This and other clinical
endpoints should guide early utilization of ultrafiltration in
appropriate patients, as opposed to its use as a salvage therapy
when diuretic therapy has clearly failed.
- Ultrafiltration with portable devices is simple to implement
since patients in the ICU already have catheters that make small
extracorporeal volume well tolerated.
“Over the last several months, we have gained significant
insights about treating COVID-19 patients, especially from the
dedicated medical professionals treating patients on the front
lines around the global,” said John Erb, CEO of CHF Solutions. “We
are pleased that the panel of experienced physicians were able to
explain how ultrafiltration can play a key role in the treatment
regimen for the most critically ill patients, including COVID-19
patients.”
The audio replay of the webcast is available at
http://ir.chf-solutions.com/events.
1. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32336959/
About Fluid Overload in Critically Ill COVID-19
PatientsFluid overload has become a common issue in
COVID-19 patients, and when left untreated, it can be extremely
dangerous for patients. When the kidneys cannot remove the
excess fluid and waste in the body, patients can experience kidney
failure and multi-organ failure. The standard protocol to
address fluid overload is to use dialysis to cleanse the blood of
excess sodium and waste and return it back to the body. However, at
times, there are not enough dialysis machines to accommodate the
number of COVID-19 patients who need them. Ultrafiltration
therapy is being used to quickly and effectively help stabilize
patients until a dialysis machine becomes available, buying time
for patients who would otherwise have no therapy available.
About CHF Solutions CHF Solutions, Inc. (CHFS)
is a medical device company dedicated to changing the lives of
patients suffering from fluid overload through science,
collaboration, and innovation. The company is focused on
developing, manufacturing and commercializing the Aquadex
SmartFlow™ system for ultrafiltration therapy. CHF Solutions is
headquartered in Minneapolis, Minn., with wholly-owned subsidiaries
in Australia and Ireland. The company has been listed on the
Nasdaq Capital Market since February 2012.
About the Aquadex SmartFlow System The Aquadex
SmartFlow system delivers clinically proven therapy using a simple,
flexible and smart method of removing excess fluid from patients
suffering from hypervolemia (fluid overload). The Aquadex
SmartFlow system is indicated for temporary (up to 8 hours) or
extended (longer than 8 hours in patients who require
hospitalization) use in adult and pediatric patients weighing 20 kg
or more whose fluid overload is unresponsive to medical management,
including diuretics. All treatments must be administered by a
health care provider, within an outpatient or inpatient clinical
setting, under physician prescription, both having received
training in extracorporeal therapies.
Forward-Looking Statements Certain statements
in this release may be considered forward-looking statements within
the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of
1995, including without limitation, statements about the treatment
of patients infected with the coronavirus. Forward-looking
statements are predictions, projections and other statements about
future events that are based on current expectations and
assumptions and, as a result, are subject to risks and
uncertainties. Many factors could cause actual future events to
differ materially from the forward-looking statements in this
release, including, without limitation, those risk associated with
our ability to execute on our commercial strategy, the possibility
that we may be unable to raise sufficient funds necessary for our
anticipated operations, our post-market clinical data collection
activities, benefits of our products to patients, our expectations
with respect to product development and commercialization efforts,
our ability to increase market and physician acceptance of our
products, potentially competitive product offerings, intellectual
property protection, our ability to integrate acquired businesses,
our expectations regarding anticipated synergies with and benefits
from acquired businesses, and other risks and uncertainties
described in our filings with the SEC. Forward-looking statements
speak only as of the date when made. CHF Solutions does not assume
any obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking
statements, whether as a result of new information, future events
or otherwise.
CONTACTS
INVESTORS:
Claudia Napal Drayton
Chief Financial Officer, CHF Solutions, Inc.
952-345-4205
ir@chf-solutions.com
MEDIA:
Jessica Stebing
Health+Commerce
260-336-6202
jstebing@healthandcommerce.com
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