CINCINNATI (March 18, 2025) – The Christ Hospital Health Network became the first site internationally to be part of the AMBER-HFpEF Phase 2 clinical trial. This phase 2 clinal trial is evaluating the novel drug CK-586 in patients with symptomatic heart failure with preserved ejected fraction.
Heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) represents roughly half of all heart failure cases. HFpEF is characterized as significant heart stiffness and lack of relaxation, leading to shortness of breath, fatigue from minimal activity, swelling in the legs, ankles or feet, chest discomfort and lightheadedness. CK-586 works directly at the level of the heart muscle to make it contract less vigorously and relax better The trial is available through the Carl and Edyth Lindner Research Center at The Christ Hospital and trial sponsor Cytokinetics. The oral medication is intended to be given once daily for 12 weeks.
“Imagine every heartbeat is a bicep curl,” said Ankit Bhatia, MD, FACC, Principal Investigator for the trial, and Advanced Heart Failure and Transplant Cardiologist at The Christ Hospital. “Now picture a 20-pound weight added to every curl. That’s what patients suffering from HFpEF deal with every day. Medication treatment for patients with stiff hearts primarily involve diuretics. The problem we find is that some patients cannot be on these medications, or these medicines don’t do enough to address the symptoms. The hope is this new medical breakthrough will act on the heart muscle to work less hard and relax more effectively. At The Christ Hospital Heart & Vascular Institute, we believe this first-in-human trial has the opportunity to be groundbreaking in our treatment of patients with HFpEF.”
Dr. Bhatia added that the hope is patients can have less symptoms of shortness of breath, less fluid accumulation and a better quality of life. The trial will look to add another 60 patients nationwide.
“At The Christ Hospital we offer patients treatment options they can’t get anywhere else,” said Dean Kereiakes, MD, FACC, MSCAI and Chairman of The Christ Hospital Heat & Vascular Institute. Dr Bhatia and the team from the Lindner Research Center are advancing therapy for this common, debilitating disorder on an international basis. They are an incredible resource for our community.”
About The Christ Hospital Health Network
The Christ Hospital Health Network consists of an acute care hospital located in Mt. Auburn, a remote hospital location in Liberty Township, eight ambulatory outpatient centers and dozens of medical offices throughout the region. For 135 years, The Christ Hospital has provided compassionate care to those it serves. Made up for more than 1,300 physicians and 7,200 team members, our mission is to improve the health of our community by providing exceptional outcomes in an affordable way. The Network was recognized by U.S. News & World Report as the #1 hospital in the Cincinnati Region and named to Newsweek’s World’s Best Hospitals list in 2025.