OBJECTIVETo explore the influence of Shenfu Injection (SFI) on heart function and bone marrow stem cell mobilization in patients with chronic heart failure.

METHODSSixty-three patients of coronary heart disease (CHD) with chronic heart failure were randomly assigned to the control group (32 cases) and the treatment group (31 cases). Western medical conventional treatment was given to all patients, but SFI was given once a day to patients in the treatment group additionally at the dose of 40 mL by dripping after dilution. After one week of treatment, the cardiac function indexes, including left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF), stroke volume (SV) and cardiac output (CO), as well as the number of CD34+ stem cells in the peripheral blood were detected and compared.

RESULTSAfter treatment, all the three cardiac function indexes were improved obviously in both groups (P < 0.01), but the improvement in the treatment group was more significant than that in the control group (P < 0.05). CD34+ stem cells were insignificantly changed in the control group after treatment, while it significantly increased in the treatment group (P < 0.01), showing significant difference between groups.

CONCLUSIONSFI can significantly enhance the systolic function of heart, increase the number of CD34+ stem cells in the peripheral blood, and promote the mobilization of bone marrow stem cells, which is possibly one of its acting mechanisms for improving the cardiac function.