Treatment of patients with heart failure (HF) using ACE inhibitors - the standard of care in the minds of most clinicians - appears to represent a cost-saving and cost-effective option, researchers reported at the 51st Annual Scientific Sessions of the American College of Cardiology [Atlanta, Georgia, US; March 2002]. In an analysis of the benefit of ACE inhibitors, investigators at a Massachusetts-based think-tank found that if all eligible patients with HF were treated with ACE inhibitors, thousands of premature deaths could be prevented and the US healthcare system would save approximately $US35 million each year.