Abstract

The goal of this paper is to present a succinct overview, from a clinician’s perspective, of the importance and implications of research on heart failure in African Americans. It first gives a brief outline of the rationale and results of the African-American Heart Failure Trial, which showed evidence for the effectiveness of fixed-dose combination of isosorbide dinitrate and hydralazine, marketed as BiDil, in this population. Finally, it underscores the necessity of treating African Americans with evidence-based medicine given that humanistic physicians and other clinicians strive to provide holistic treatment to their patients.Most researchers and clinicians recognize the difficulty with utilizing race as a category for inclusion in trials. While race lacks any true biologic definition, it is potentially beneficial as a consideration in clinical studies, based on prior evidence of certain potential differences across self-identified racial/ethnic groups in morbidity and mortality and responses to medicine. Even though use of race as a classification is a problematic distinction, it should not be ignored. If clinical trials demonstrate significant improvement with targeted treatment in African Americans, clinicians should not withhold life-saving drugs that result from such studies.