Heart Health

Heart failure, mildly reduced ejection fraction

Ejection fraction — the number that decides the whole regimen 41–49% (mildly reduced)

Recommendationhf-mrefNo one has reached this rule yet

SGLT2 inhibitor first; the other three reasonable to add

Clinical review

All reviewers

No clinician has signed off this rule yet. It reflects our reading of the guidelines cited below, which has not been independently checked.

What someone who reaches this rule is told

Word for word, as generated for the example person below. Figures in the text are theirs.

  • Reasonable — worth discussing

    Your ejection fraction is 45%, in the mildly-reduced band. An SGLT2 inhibitor is the clearest recommendation; the other three classes are reasonable to add.

    Dapagliflozin and empagliflozin reduced heart failure hospitalizations across this range, regardless of diabetes. An ARNI (or ACE inhibitor/ARB), a heart-failure beta blocker, and an MRA all have supportive but weaker evidence in this band than they do below 40% — they're reasonable, and they become clearly indicated if your ejection fraction drops further. Because this band sits on a boundary, it's worth repeating the echocardiogram rather than assuming the number is fixed.

    Outcome-provenTested in randomised trials measuring heart attacks, strokes, or death, not a stand-in for them.· Class 2a/2b· Level B-R· checked 2026-09-12

    2022 AHA/ACC/HFSA Guideline for the Management of Heart Failure (Circulation) · Class 2a/2b

An example person who reaches it

Heart failure, mildly reduced” — an illustrative profile, not a real user.

70-year-old manBP 124/78LDL 120heart failure, EF 45%10-yr PREVENT-ASCVD 7.9%

Their path through heart failure

  1. Diagnosed heart failure?Yes
  2. Ejection fraction — the number that decides the whole regimen41–49% (mildly reduced) ← this rule
  3. Care that applies at any ejection fractionAlways

Where it sits

Asked after: Heart failure

Sources

Cited by the recommendations above.

Review this rule

For practising clinicians. Endorse it, propose a change, or dispute it. We verify every reviewer before a review is shown, and a review stays attached to the version of the rule you saw — if the rule changes, the page says so. You'll be asked to declare any relevant interests; they're shown with your review.

Log in or create an account to submit a review. An account is how we tie a review to a person we can verify.

Runs in lib/engine/heartFailurePathway.ts as hf-mref.