Matters of the Heart: The Case of TNFα-Targeting Drugs
Figure 1
Cardiovascular outcome of pharmacological interventions with infliximab or etanercept in patients with NYHA class III or IV
heart failure (HF)
The graph in the upper section shows increasing circulating levels of TNFα in HF patients as a function of disease severity (NYHA class). The central section represents NYHA class III or IV patients that were recruited in trials that probed infliximab or etanercept. In the bottom section, infliximab decreased circulating levels of acute phase proteins (IL-6, CRP) but caused increased cardiac events, while etanercept lacked effects or caused increased cardiac events. Solid circles indicate circulating TNFα. NYHA, New York Heart Association; IL-6, interleukin 6; CRP, C–reactive protein. Based on (2, 17–19).
