Jardiance for congestive heart failure: pros and cons?

@earther Interesting that your cardiologist won't prescribe Jardiance for the reasons you gave. From what I've seen the ads for this and other similar drugs are pushing its use in heart failure, along with the weight loss and any number of providers are prescribing it. It's good to hear from the folks who have taken these drugs and find their conditions being improved significantly, and more power to them I say. But I'm still leery of the side effects, especially considering what happened to my brother who was taking an SGLT-2 drug.

I saw my own cardiologist a couple weeks ago, and while I agreed with him that losing weight would go a long way in improving my comorbidities ( including pulmonary hypertension, though without symptoms, at this point) and I'm working on it, I told him I would NOT consider taking any of those drugs because I was leery about 1) the need to take the drugs forever for continued weight maintenance, and 2) short term side effects and 3) the long term side effects we don't know about yet. He agreed with me, nodded when I mentioned the side effects and said, "well, I won't prescribe them then". Fortunately, this guy listens to me, so many docs don't.

@marybird

I much prefer the natural path (but not naturopaths), too.

It is definitely tempting, but given the outcome I had of taking Prozac intermittently for years (bradycardia), starting when it first came out and there was much enthusiasm about it and doctors / counselors were saying, "It's like insulin for diabetes: You need to take this for the rest of your life."

For now, I'm going with what my cardiologist who has 30 years of experience says and that old adage: "If it sounds to good to be true, it probably is."

I lost my voice , dysphonia, while taking Jardiance for my heart failure. Some people were happy about that but I was not. (Truth)

Is that permanent loss or would going off the Jardiance help? Is it listed as a possible side effect? So sorry to hear.

I have heart scar with preserved ejection fraction and my cardiologist thought Jardiance might help keep the scar from getting worse. I’ve been on it about 2 months without side effects though have had 1 UTI so far. This is a side effect my doctor warned me about. I drink a small glass of pure cranberry juice every morning to counter this . No weight loss or side effects besides the UTI.

I’ve been on dapagliflozin for 6 weeks. It made a huge difference in my exercise tolerance. I have covid cardiomyopathy caused hfpef. I had a weird couple days of crazy thirst. I got my electrolytes checked, they were ok. No weight loss. I wore a Stelo before going on it and one after. No big change there. I’m not diabetic. I eat a portfolio style diet. The data for sglt-2 is pretty impressive for hfpef, first drug class that has changed outcomes.

I have been taking Jardiance for 3 years. I saw a huge improvement in my exercise tolerance….and some minor water weight loss.

I have not had any side effects.

I stopped taking it for 2 months last years…and I could really tell the difference.

Only question I still have is this…. Will Jardiance slow or stop the remodeling on my heart? I have not seen any studies to address this,

My understanding is the Jardiance is the only FDA approved medication for HFpEF….but other than making the breathing easier….is there any other benefit? Can they even define and qualify any improvement?

My feeling is that this is another band aide… but actual improvement or slowing of the effects has not been shown.

@katiekateny Thanks so much for sharing your story. I, too, would love to see more info on the possibility of the long term effects while on Jardiance. and very hopeful that they could be very positive.
Wishing for you the very best!

@katiekateny
SGLT2 meds reduce hospitalization rates and heart failure deaths in patients with hfpef. They also preserve kidney function. They probably reduce afib episodes. So a pretty good bandaid!