VIFOR-PHARMA
31.8.2021 07:02:05 CEST | Business Wire | Press release
Regulatory News:
Vifor Pharma is pleased to announce that the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) included new recommendations and proposals in the 2021 ESC guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of acute and chronic heart failure for two of their key products, Ferinject® and Veltassa® .
With regard to iron deficiency, the following new recommendations for HF patients with reduced function of the heart are added:
- Periodic screening for iron deficiency is recommended in all HF patients (Class I).
- Ferinject® should be considered to reduce the risk of HF hospitalizations in symptomatic HF patients with iron deficiency (Class IIa).
- Ferinject® should be considered before and early after discharge in patients who have been hospitalized with acute heart failure and with iron deficiency to improve HF symptoms and reduce risk of re-hospitalizations (Class IIa).
The existing recommendation to consider Ferinject® in patients with HF and iron deficiency to alleviate HF symptoms, improve exercise capacity and quality of life remains unchanged (Class IIa designation). The results of the AFFIRM-AHF study are reflected in the update of the ESC guidelines. Ferinject® remains the only intravenous (i.v.) iron therapy specifically mentioned in the new ESC HF guidelines.
The guidelines also propose that the use of potassium binder agents like Veltassa® may allow RAAS inhibitor initiation or uptitration in a larger proportion of heart failure patients. In patients with chronic or recurrent hyperkalemia on RAAS inhibitor therapy Veltassa® may as well be initiated to maintain the patients on guidelines recommended doses of RAAS inhibitors. The new proposals further describe the unique evidence for RAASi enabling generated by Veltassa® through the clinical trials.
“We are very pleased with the new recommendations to the ESC’s guidelines in heart failure and are grateful for this development for the patients,” commented Klaus Henning Jensen, Chief Medical Officer of Vifor Pharma. “With improved diagnosis rates of iron deficiency and enabling RAASi, more patients can benefit from treatment. Reducing the risk of heart failure hospitalizations and improving symptoms are key therapeutic goals in the treatment of heart failure. We are particularly pleased by the consideration of Ferinject® and Veltassa® in the new treatment guidelines to achieve these therapeutic goals and believe this will enable us to further expand our role in helping heart failure patients with iron deficiency and hyperkalemia live better, healthier lives.”
The ESC HF guidelines aim to provide practical, evidence-based recommendations for the diagnosis and treatment of HF, thereby improving and harmonizing standards of diagnosis and treatment of cardiovascular diseases for physicians, and potentially optimizing patient care. The ESC HF guidelines are updated periodically, with the 2021 version published at the virtual ESC congress end of August 2021.
The 2021 ESC guidelines are published under: www.escardio.org/Guidelines
About Vifor Pharma Group
Vifor Pharma Group is a global pharmaceuticals company. It aims to become the global leader in iron deficiency, nephrology and cardio-renal therapies. The company is a partner of choice for pharmaceuticals and innovative patient-focused solutions. Vifor Pharma Group strives to help patients around the world with severe and chronic diseases lead better, healthier lives. The company develops, manufactures and markets pharmaceutical products for precision patient care. Vifor Pharma Group holds a leading position in all its core business activities and consists of the following companies: Vifor Pharma and Vifor Fresenius Medical Care Renal Pharma (a joint company with Fresenius Medical Care). Vifor Pharma Group is headquartered in Switzerland, and listed on the Swiss Stock Exchange (SIX Swiss Exchange, VIFN, ISIN: CH0364749348).
For more information, please visit viforpharma.com .
About AFFIRM-AHF
The AFFIRM-AHF study was a multi-center, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial, comparing the effect of intravenous ferric carboxymaltose (FCM) on hospitalizations and mortality in iron deficient patients admitted for acute heart failure. The study demonstrated that administration of Ferinject®
reduced the risk of HF hospitalizations and improved quality of life with no apparent effect on the risk of cardiovascular death.
About Ferinject®
Ferinject®
/Injectafer®
(ferric carboxymaltose) is a leading i.v. iron therapy with market authorization in 84 countries by the end of June 2021. More than 16 million patient years of experience have helped to establish Ferinject®
/ Injectafer®
as a trusted brand, with clinical benefits demonstrated by its efficacy and safety data2
.
About Veltassa®
Veltassa®
(patiromer) is a potassium binder approved for the treatment of hyperkalemia. Veltassa®
was specially designed to exchange calcium rather than sodium for potassium ions, ensuring suitability for patients who cannot tolerate even small increases in sodium. Veltassa®
should not replace emergency treatment for life-threatening hyperkalemia.
References:
1
Anker, S.,D. (2018). Effects of ferric carboxymaltose on hospitalisations and mortality rates in iron-deficient heart failure patients: an individual patient meta-analysis. Eur J Heart fail. 20(1):125-133. doi: 1002/ejhf.823.
2
Scott Drugs. 2018 Mar;78(4):479–493. doi: 10.1007/ s40265-018-0885-7.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210830005519/en/
Link:
About Business Wire
Subscribe to releases from Business Wire
Subscribe to all the latest releases from Business Wire by registering your e-mail address below. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Latest releases from Business Wire
SLB Announces Date for Second-Quarter 2026 Results Conference Call26.5.2026 19:00:00 CEST | Press release
SLB (NYSE: SLB) will hold a conference call on July 24, 2026, to discuss the results for the second quarter ending June 30, 2026. The conference call is scheduled to begin at 9:30 a.m. U.S. Eastern time and a press release regarding the results will be issued at 7:00 a.m. U.S. Eastern time. To access the conference call, listeners should contact the Conference Call Operator at +1 (800) 715-9871 within North America or +1 (646) 307-1963 outside of North America approximately 10 minutes prior to the start of the call and the access code is 3440360. A webcast of the conference call will be broadcast simultaneously at https://events.q4inc.com/attendee/157027565 on a listen-only basis. Listeners should log in 15 minutes prior to the start of the call to test their browsers and register for the webcast. Following the end of the conference call, a replay will be available at www.slb.com/irwebcast until July 31, 2026, and can be accessed by dialing +1 (800) 770-2030 within North America or +1
Alipay Launches Next-Generation AI Payment Infrastructure, Debuts AI Wallet and Token Pay to Power Agentic Economy26.5.2026 17:20:00 CEST | Press release
Alipay today introduced its full-stack AI payment solution to partners across industries, ranging from AI companies to traditional retailers, and debuted two new services — the world’s first AI Wallet and Token Pay — to support the agentic economy’s rapid growth. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260526337824/en/ Alipay Unveils Next-generation AI Payment Infrastructure This launch extends Alipay's next-generation AI payment infrastructure, building on its consumer-facing product Alipay AI Pay and its business-facing AI payment processing product. “While the essence of commerce remains unchanged in the age of AI, the emergence of AI agents is reshaping everything. Drawing on 22 years of technological expertise and commercial know-how, Alipay is building a new generation of AI payment services to accelerate the growth of the agentic commerce ecosystem,” said Cyril Han, CEO of Ant Group. AI Wallet: Giving Users Vis
Daiichi Sankyo Europe Reaffirms Commitment to Patient-Centred Care with Extensive Data Showcase at EAS Congress 202626.5.2026 17:00:00 CEST | Press release
Presentations at the 94th European Atherosclerosis Society (EAS) Congress highlight the breadth of evidence for bempedoic acid across a wide range of patient subgroups and background therapies. Real-world data from the MILOS study across multiple European cohorts demonstrate consistent effectiveness and safety profile in routine clinical practice.1,2,3,4 Analysis from the CLEAR Outcomes trial underscores the impact of bempedoic acid on cardiovascular risks, including stroke and venous thromboembolism (VTE).5,6 Daiichi Sankyo Europe’s commitment to "care for every heartbeat" is centred on providing accessible oral treatment options to ensure every patient is given a chance to reach their LDL-C goals. Daiichi Sankyo Europe (DSE) is pleased to announce its extensive scientific presence at the European Atherosclerosis Society (EAS) Congress 2026. The presentation of 15 abstracts, comprising both clinical trial analyses and real-world evidence, underscores the company's sustained investment
OpenRouter Raises $113 Million CapitalG-led Series B as Weekly Volume Explodes to 25T Tokens26.5.2026 15:15:00 CEST | Press release
NVentures, ServiceNow Ventures, MongoDB Ventures, Snowflake Ventures, Databricks Ventures join CapitalG, a16z, Menlo Ventures, and others in backing the high-growth AI infrastructure startup OpenRouter, the AI model exchange, today announced a $113 million Series B led by Alphabet’s independent growth fund, CapitalG, with participation from investors including NVentures (NVIDIA’s venture capital arm), ServiceNow Ventures, MongoDB Ventures, Snowflake Ventures, Databricks Ventures, alongside existing investors including Andreessen Horowitz and Menlo Ventures. OpenRouter’s volume has surged to 25 trillion tokens per week (100 trillion tokens per month), representing a 5X increase from the 5 trillion tokens processed per week just six months ago. The explosion in token demand illustrates how quickly enterprises are deploying agents and scaling AI across multiple models and providers. OpenRouter’s infrastructure manages and optimizes inference and provides access to 400+ models across leadi
Xsolla Expands Its Community Management Tools for Creators, Community Leaders, and Resellers26.5.2026 15:00:00 CEST | Press release
Xsolla Adds New Features For Creators, Community Leader Experience, And Distinct Channels For Emerging Markets Xsolla, a leading global video game commerce company, today announced three simultaneous expansions of its community management tools and products. As the creator economy continues to reshape how games are discovered and the industry accelerates its shift toward direct-to-consumer commerce, Xsolla is building on its community management tools for creators, community leaders, and emerging markets, and will showcase them at TwitchCon Rotterdam later this month. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260526596720/en/ Graphic: Xsolla The games industry has never had a shortage of people who drive player acquisition, loyalty, and commerce; it's had a shortage of infrastructure that recognizes them. Creators stream it. Community leaders build a culture around it. Local resellers get it into the hands of players in
In our pressroom you can read all our latest releases, find our press contacts, images, documents and other relevant information about us.
Visit our pressroom