Heart failure & cardiomyopathiesCohort study
Attitudes towards using single-pill combination (polypill) therapy in heart failure: patients' and physicians' perspectives
- Two prospective, electronic surveys
- physician-oriented survey (22 questions) distributed internationally
- patient-oriented survey (11 questions)
Authors' conclusion
Both physicians and patients showed strong openness and willingness towards an HF-specific SPC, supporting further development and evaluation of HF-specific polypill strategies.
Study context
- Population
- Physicians and patients, regarding a polypill in heart failure (HF) with ejection fraction ≤50%250 physicians and 126 patients participated · physicians 250 · patients 126
- Participants
- 250 vs 126
- Exposure
- physicians vs patients
- physiciansn = 250
- patientsn = 126
Main finding
As reported in the abstract
Physician attitudes towards GDMT simplification and an HF-specific SPC
- Physicians reporting a clear need for strategies to simplify guideline-directed medical therapy (GDMT) optimisation in HFrEF
- 77%
- Barrier: cost
- 66%
- Barrier: polypharmacy
- 54%
- Physicians recognizing a real clinical need for an HF-specific single-pill combinations (SPC)
- 95%
- Perceived clinically useful
- 88%
- Perceived logistically feasible
- 76%
- Perceived acceptable to patients
- 94%
- Would use it regularly
- 48%
- Would use it in selected patients
- 49%
- Preferred composition: beta-blocker, mineralocorticoid receptor antagonist (MRA), and SGLT2 inhibitor
- 61.2%
Observational data: associations, not effects.
Further findings
Patient medication burden, adherence and attitudes towards an HF-specific SPC
- Patients taking ≥6 drugs daily
- 70%
- Admitted to occasional non-adherence
- 75%
- Would support a solution that reduces the pill burden
- 82%
- Would take an HF-specific SCP if offered, particularly if there is no extra cost
- 83%
Original publication
Attitudes towards using single-pill combination (polypill) therapy in heart failure: patients' and physicians' perspectives. ESC Heart Fail. Published 11 February 2026. doi:10.1093/eschf/xvag044
Summarised from the published abstract; every number is checked against it