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Enrolling by invitationPhase 2

Tests a ketone drink in people with heart failure and preserved ejection fraction

Tests whether a ketone drink affects exercise and heart function in adults with HFpEF.

Key facts

Who runs it
Duke University
Where
Durham, United StatesSee the site
Trial code
Registry title
Chronic Exogenous Ketosis in HFpEF
Status
Enrolling by invitation
Phase
Phase 2
People taking part
20 people, planned
Started
28 Jul 2025
Expected to end
Jun 2027
Type of study
Interventional, 2 groupsOne group gets a placebo (a dummy treatment), for comparison.
Treatments tested
  • Exogenous Ketone Drink
  • Placebo
Record updated
14 October 2026

Who can take part

AI summary

From the trial's eligibility criteria. Machine-read from the registry text on this page, so it can be wrong. The registry text below and the trial team decide who can take part.

The trial is looking for adults with heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF), where the heart pumps normally but fills stiffly. It tests a ketone drink against a placebo drink.

Age
18 years or older
Sex
All sexes can join.
Disease stage
Heart failure symptoms of NYHA class II or III. Left ventricular ejection fraction of 50% or higher. Signs of raised heart filling pressures, shown by echocardiography, blood tests, a previous pressure measurement or a past heart failure episode needing IV diuretics.
Earlier treatment
Stable medical therapy for at least 2 weeks. No intentional ketogenic diet in the last week. No GLP-1 RA started in the past 6 months.
Biomarker or test result
Echocardiography signs of raised filling pressures, such as a mitral E/e' ratio above 8 with other findings, or above 14. Or raised natriuretic peptides (NT-proBNP above 125 pg/ml or BNP above 35 pg/ml) within the past year.

Main reasons for not taking part

  • Pregnant women
  • Type 1 diabetes
  • Cirrhosis or alcohol use disorder (more than 14 drinks a week)
  • Left ventricular ejection fraction below 45% in the past
  • Serious lung disease, severe valve disease, or other conditions that limit exercise

The registry criteria, word for word

Show all 22 criteriaShow less

Who can take part

  • 18 years of age or older
  • Stable medical therapy for at least 2 weeks
  • New York Heart Association (NYHA) class symptoms II or III
  • Left ventricular ejection fraction ≥ 50%
  • Evidence for elevated filling pressures as follows (at least one of the following between a-d):; Mitral early (E)/mitral septal tissue annular (e') velocity ratio > 8 on echocardiography in addition to one of the following:; Enlarged left atrium (LA>4.0 cm width or LA volume index >34 mL/m2)
  • Chronic loop diuretic use for control of symptoms
  • Elevated natriuretic peptides within the past year (NT-proBNP>125 pg/ml or BNP>35 pg/ml)
  • Mitral E/e' ratio > 14 at rest or with exercise on echocardiography
  • Elevated invasively-determined filling pressures previously (resting left ventricular end-diastolic pressure >16 mm Hg or pulmonary capillary wedge pressure > 14 mmHg; or PCWP or LVEDP ≥ 25 mmHg with exercise)
  • Prior episode of acute heart failure requiring IV diuretics with evidence of volume overload on exam or radiology, or evidence of elevated natriuretic peptides

Who cannot take part

  • Participation in another clinical study with an investigational product in the previous 4 weeks prior to enrollment (or longer if deemed necessary by the investigator)
  • Cirrhosis or alcohol use disorder (>14 drinks/week)
  • Clinically significant lung disease, defined as severe obstructive lung disease (Gold stage 3), a requirement for supplemental oxygen, or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease with an exacerbation requiring steroids or antibiotics within the last 2 months
  • Type 1 diabetes mellitus
  • Angina due to epicardial coronary disease or known presence of clinically-significant, unrevascularized epicardial coronary disease, in the investigator's opinion
  • Conditions that may render the patient unable to complete the study, in the opinion of the investigator
  • Contraindications to stress testing, conditions that limit exercise, and other clinically-significant causes of exertional limitation (claudication with peripheral artery disease, atrial fibrillation and heart rate >110 at rest, systolic blood pressure>180 mmHg or diastolic blood pressure>110 mmHg, infiltrative/hypertrophic/inflammatory cardiomyopathy, clinically significant pericardial disease, joint or neuromuscular disease that precludes exercise, acute coronary syndrome within the last 2 months, estimated glomerular filtration rate<20 mL/min/1.73 m2, and hemoglobin < 9 mg/dL)
  • Prior reduced LVEF to < 45% by echocardiography or cardiac MRI
  • Intentional ketogenic (high fat, low carbohydrate) diet in the last week
  • > Moderate aortic stenosis, >mild mitral stenosis, > moderate aortic or mitral regurgitation on screening echocardiogram, or presence of a prosthetic valve in the mitral position
  • Start of a GLP-1 RA within the past 6 months
  • Pregnant women

Where in United States

  • Duke UniversityDurham, United StatesEnrolling by invitation

About the trial

What the trial wants to find out

The goal of this clinical research study is to test what effects a ketone drink will have in people with heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF), including on exercise and heart function. Patients with HFpEF often have difficulty exercising, and our goal is to understand whether a ketone drink changes much patients can exercise. The study has three visits, including a baseline visit to assess for study eligibility, and two visits (one after 8 weeks of a ketone drink or a placebo drink, and another one after 8 weeks of whichever drink the participant did not receive the first time).

The 2 groups in the trial

  • Exogenous ketone drinkTreatment being tested

    (R)-1,3-butanediol (commercially obtained as "KetoneIQ")

  • PlaceboPlacebo, for comparison

    ketone-free solution

Questions to ask the study team

  1. How often do I need to come in, and for how long each time?
  2. Are travel costs paid?
  3. Can I keep my own doctor?
  4. What happens if I want to stop?

Contact the study team: see the registry record → Contacts and Locations

Print a page for my doctor

Data and sources

Registry record
Listed on ClinicalTrials.gov.
Official title
Chronic Effects of Exogenous Ketone Administration in Heart Failure With Preserved Ejection Fraction
Plain-language title
Tests a ketone drink in people with heart failure and preserved ejection fractionGenerated from the registry record. The registry title is the official one.
AI summary
From the trial's eligibility criteria. Read by machine on 12 November 2026.
Record updated
14 October 2026