Future Research Prioritization in Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy

Abstract Background Although cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) is effective for some patients with heart failure and a reduced left ventricular ejection fraction (HFrEF), evidence gaps remain for key clinical and policy areas. Objective Review the data on the effects of CRT for patients with HFrEF receiving pharmacological therapy alone or pharmacological therapy and an ICD and then, informed by a diverse group of stakeholders, to identify evidence-gaps, prioritize them and develop a research plan. Method Relevant studies were identified using PubMed and EMBASE and ongoing trials using clinicaltrials.gov . Forced-ranking prioritization method was applied by stakeholders to reach a consensus on the most important questions.