SynthesisBMC cardiovascular disorders2025
The efficacy of transcutaneous vagus nerve stimulation in heart failure management - a systematic review and meta-analysis.
Synthesis in BMC cardiovascular disorders, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
3 citing papers in PubMed.
- Reframing Heart Failure as a Multiorgan Network Disorder: Translational and Regenerative Perspectives in Veterinary Cardiology.Veterinary sciences · 2026Review
- Neural Regulation of Cardiac Arrhythmias: From the Brain-Heart Axis to Emerging Precision Therapies.Research (Washington, D.C.) · 2026Review
- Balancing the autonomic scale: the promise of transcutaneous vagus nerve stimulation in combating cardiovascular diseases.Frontiers in physiology · 2026Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
4 authors.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundHeart failure (HF) is a prevalent global health concern characterized by elevated mortality and morbidity rates. Non-invasive transcutaneous vagus nerve stimulation (t-VNS) has emerged as a potential therapeutic intervention for improving cardiac function and alleviating clinical symptoms in HF patients by modulating autonomic nervous system equilibrium.
methodsWe conducted a comprehensive and systematic search across various scholarly databases, including PubMed, the Cochrane Library, CNKI, and Web of Science, to identify RCTs examining the therapeutic benefits of t-VNS in patients with HF. Statistical analysis of the results was carried out using the random-effects model in Review Manager 5.3 software. The research protocol has been registered in the PROSPERO registry with the registration number CRD42024570589.
resultsThe analysis included ten RCTs involving a collective sample of 374 patients with HF. The meta-analysis results revealed that t-VNS treatment significantly increased LVEF (MD 3.21, 95% CI 1.46 to 4.95, P = 0.0003), improved GLS (MD -2.31, 95% CI -3.52 to -1.10, P = 0.0002), enhanced 6-MWD (MD 86.6 m, 95% CI 59.55 to 113.65, P < 0.00001), reduced MLHFQ score (MD -13.32, 95% CI -19.38 to -7.26, P < 0.00001), lowered TNF-α levels (MD -1.47, 95% CI -2.36 to -0.59, P = 0.001), and Significantly reduced HR (MD -4.24, 95% CI -8.27 to -0.22, P = 0.04), t-VNS exhibited good tolerability with no reported adverse events.
conclusiont-VNS represents a promising therapeutic modality for heart failure, providing advantages such as improved cardiac function, enhanced well-being, reduced inflammatory marker levels, reduced HR and favorable safety profile.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.