PT - JOURNAL ARTICLE AU - Thomas Bitter AU - Nina Westerheide AU - Georg Nölker AU - Klaus-Jürgen Gutleben AU - Jürgen Vogt AU - Johannes Heintze AU - Dieter Horstkotte AU - Jost Niedermeyer AU - Olaf Oldenburg TI - Adaptive servoventilation reduces the risk of malignant arrhythmic events in patients with congestive heart failure and Cheyne-Stokes respiration DP - 2011 Sep 01 TA - European Respiratory Journal PG - p1745 VI - 38 IP - Suppl 55 4099 - http://erj.ersjournals.com/content/38/Suppl_55/p1745.short 4100 - http://erj.ersjournals.com/content/38/Suppl_55/p1745.full SO - Eur Respir J2011 Sep 01; 38 AB - Cheyne-Stokes respiration (CSR) is an independent risk factor for malignant arrhythmias in patients (pts) with congestive heart failure (CHF). The aim of this study was to investigate whether treatment of CSR with Adaptive Servoventilation (ASV) reduced the risk of malignant arrhythmic events in pts with CHF.403 pts with CHF (LVEF ≤ 45%, NYHA-class ≥ 2) and an implanted CRT-D or ICD device underwent overnight polygraphy with 221 having mild or no CSR (Apnea Hypopnea Index (AHI) < 15/h), and 182 having moderate to severe CSR (AHI > 15/h). Those with CSR were offered therapy with ASV accepted by 96 and rejected by 86 pts. During follow-up (48 months) CRT or ICD monitored ventricular arrhythmias and cardioversion events were recorded in addition to clinical and physiologic measures of heart failure severity.Event-free survival from a) appropriately monitored ventricular arrhythmias and b) appropriate cardioverter-defibrillator therapies was shorter in the untreated CSR group compared to the treated CSR and the no CSR group. Stepwise Cox proportional hazard regression analysis showed untreated CSR (a: HR 1.99, 95%CI 1.46-2.72, p<0.001; b: HR 2.19, 95%CI 1.42-3.37, p<0.001), but not treated CSR (a: HR 1.06, 95%CI 0.74-1.50; p=0.77; b: HR 1.21, 95%CI 0.75-1.93, p=0.43) was an independent risk factor.Conclusion: In pts with CHF and CRT/ICD the presence of untreated CSR is a risk factor for malignant arrhythmias. Treatment of CSR with ASV mitigates the risk. If present, CSR appears a therapeutic target for pts with CHF at risk of malignant arrhythmias.