Question: Which ARBs are recommended for heart failure?
Answer: There are many angiotensin receptor blockers that have been tested and are recommended in heart failure. Some of those include losartan, valsartan, or candasartan. Of these, candasartan and valsartan have been tested in large clinical trials and have been shown to reduce progression of heart failure, symptoms, and signs.
In fact, we now know that if a patient cannot tolerate an angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitor or an ACE inhibitor, then the logical choice then is to use an angiotensin receptor blocking drug. We also have situations where patients cannot tolerate beta blockers, and in those instances we recommend the addition of an angiotensin receptor blocker to the ACE inhibitor instead of the beta blocker.