AHA

AHA 2025: Heart failure polypill boosts cardiac function, quality of life

November 14, 2025

In a late-breaking presentation at the AHA Scientific Sessions 2025, the POLY-HF trial (N=212; median age, 54; 54% Black, 33% Hispanic; 68% uninsured) comparing a once-daily “polypill” (metoprolol, spironolactone, empagliflozin, plus background sacubitril–valsartan) vs. usual care showed striking benefits at six months: a 3.4-point absolute increase in left ventricular ejection fraction, ~60% fewer HF hospitalizations/ED visits, and a ~9-point gain in Kansas City Cardiomyopathy Questionnaire scores consistent with reduced fatigue and symptoms. Drug monitoring confirmed 79% adherence in the polypill arm vs. 54% with separate pills, equating to a more than 4-fold greater odds of taking all tested medications with the polypill. Recruited from two safety-net centers in Dallas, the multiethnic cohort faced high social vulnerability (food insecurity 42%, housing instability 32%). While preliminary, these results offer a compelling strategy to simplify guideline-directed medical therapy and enhance outcomes in underrepresented HFrEF populations.

Source:

American Heart Association. “Combination pill for heart failure improved heart function, symptoms and quality of life.” News release, Nov. 10, 2025. https://newsroom.heart.org/news/combination-pill-for-heart-failure-improved-heart-function-symptoms-and-quality-of-life