In coronary heart disease (CHD), the coronary arteries become clogged with calcium and fatty deposits. The deposits, called plaques, narrow the arteries that carry blood to the heart muscle and could cause ischemic heart disease (too little blood and oxygen reaching the heart muscle). Coronary Artery Bypass Graft (CABG) surgery is a treatment option for ischemic heart disease. CABG surgery is surgery to create new routes for blood to flow around narrowed and blocked arteries so that the heart muscle will receive needed oxygen and nutrients. Acute kidney injury is a serious risk of CABG surgery while on CPB pump (heart-lung machine), which could result from ischemia during and following surgery. This study is a double-blind (neither the patient or the doctor knows whether the patient is assigned to receive study drug or placebo), randomized (assigned to treatment by chance), placebo-controlled (study drug results compared to placebo results) study to determine the effectiveness of nesiritide compared to placebo when given to HF patients undergoing CABG surgery requiring the use of a CPB pump . The study drug (nesiritide) or placebo dose being studied is 0.010 mcg/kg/min via continuous IV infusion. The study hypothesis is that compared to placebo, nesiritide will reduce kidney ischemia, preserve glomerular filtration rate (GFR),which measures the rate at which the kidneys filter blood, and the need for dialysis or occurrence of death in HF patients who have undergone heart bypass surgery requiring the use of a cardiopulmonary bypass machine. Safety will be assessed through the collection of adverse events, clinical laboratory tests, vital signs, physical examinations and electrocardiograms at various time points throughout the study. The patients assigned to the nesiritide group will receive a continuous I.V. infusion at 0.010 mcg/kg/min of nesiritide for at least 48 hours and could be extended to up to 96 hours. The patients assigned to the placebo group will receive matching placebo.
