Omecamtiv mecarbil provides new hope for heart failure patients

A new drug which helps the heart pump more easily could improve the lives of thousands of people afflicted by debilitating heart failure, research suggests. Omecamtiv mecarbil is the first of a new class of drugs, called myosin activators, targeting proteins that make the heart contract. Rather than forcing the heart to beat more often, the drug causes heart muscles to contract for longer, increasing the volume of blood pumped out with each stroke. A British trial reported in The Lancet medical journal showed that omecamtiv mecarbil significantly improved the heart function of 45 heart failure patients.