Rationale and design of the left atrial pressure monitoring to optimize heart failure therapy study (LAPTOP-HF)

Background Daily measurements of left atrial pressure (LAP) may be useful for guiding adjustments in medical therapy that prevent clinical decompensation in patients with severe heart failure (HF). Study Design LAPTOP-HF is a prospective, multicenter, randomized, controlled clinical trial in ambulatory patients with advanced heart failure in which the safety and clinical effectiveness of a physician-directed patient self-management therapeutic strategy based on LAP measured twice daily by means of an implantable sensor will be compared with a control group receiving optimal medical therapy. The trial will enroll up to 730 patients with New York Heart Association functional class III symptoms and either a hospitalization for HF during the previous 12 months or an elevated B-type natriuretic peptide level, regardless of ejection fraction, at up to 75 investigational centers. Randomization to the treatment group or control group will be at a 1:1 ratio in 3 strata based on the ejection fraction (EF > or ≤35%) and the presence of a de novo CRT device indication. Summary LAPTOP-HF will provide essential information about the role of implantable LAP monitoring in conjunction with a new HF treatment paradigm across the spectrum of HF patients.