[Renal insufficiency and treatment of persistent cardiac insufficiency with converting enzyme inhibitor].

The purpose of this retrospective study was to consider impaired renal function in patients with severe congestive heart failure after converting enzyme inhibition and to emphasize the characteristics of this population. The study concerned 26 patients (pts), 72.5 +/- 8.1 years old, with a severe congestive heart failure (NYHA Class IV). Before treatment serum creatinine was slightly increased and the introduction of angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitor (ACEI) - Captopril 58.9 +/- 17.3 mg/j or enalapril 9.2 +/- 4.4 mg - impaired renal function from 132.0 +/- 50.7 mumol/l to 183.5 +/- 139.3 mumol/l (n = 26; p less than 0.05). Patients were separated in 3 groups: in group I; 15 pts, serum creatinine remained unchanged under ACEI in despite of the significant decrease of blood pressure (BP); from 140.7 +/- 24.0/82.5 +/- 13.4 to 120.3 +/- 12.8/71.8 +/- 8.7 mmHg (p less than 0.01). The cause of heart failure was an ischemic heart disease (IHD) in 15 patients (chi 2 test, p less than 0.05), a dilated cardiomyopathy in 4 pts and an aortic or mitral valvular regurgitation in 2 pts. In contrast renal function was significantly impaired in group II; serum creatinine increased from 120.8 +/- 25.2 to 189.0 +/- 80.7 mumol/l under ACEI. BP remained unchanged 136.9 +/- 29.0/78.1 +/- 4.9 and 118.7 +/- 13.6/75.6 +/- 7.6 mmHg respectively before and after treatment. There was 4 pts with dilated cardiomyopathy, 4 pts with mitral or aortic valvular regurgitation and only one with IHD. The introduction of an ACEI in two pts--group III--with severe tricuspid regurgitation induced an acute and reversal renal failure (serum creatinine at 600 mumol/l).