Effect of omega-3 fatty acids on hypoalbuminemia in acute heart failure patients with increased inflammatory activity

Introduction: inflammatory activity (IA) is a cause of hypoalbuminemia in patients with acute heart failure (AHF). Objectives: the main objective of this study was to evaluate whether an AI modulator treatment contributes to correcting albuminemia in this context. Methods: in this clinical trial 43 patients with AHF, hypoalbuminemia (serum albumin 3.4 g/dl), and elevated IA [C-reactive protein (CRP) 25 mg/l] were randomly assigned to receive omega-3 fatty acids (4 g daily) or placebo for 4 weeks. Albuminemia and CRP were reassessed at weeks 1 and 4. An analysis of variance for repeated measures was performed. Results: mean age was 75.6 ± 8.8 years, 72.1 % were male, and the most frequent etiology was ischemic (46.5 %). The two groups were homogeneous in their baseline characteristics. A significant increase in albumin concentration was found at week 4 from baseline (p for the effect of time < 0.001), with no differences between groups at week 1 or week 4. CRP decreased significantly in week 1 (p for the effect of time < 0.001), with no differences between groups in either week 1 or week 4. Conclusion: in patients with AHF, hypoalbuminemia, and elevated AI albuminemia normalizes in week 4, while CRP already drops significantly during the first week. In this context both effects are independent of the addition of high doses of omega-3 fatty acids.