Ziltivekimab Fails to Reduce Cardiovascular Events in High-Risk Patients with ASCVD, CKD, and Systemic Inflammation

The ZEUS trial, presented at AHA 2026 and simultaneously published in NEJM, found that anti-inflammatory therapy with ziltivekimab did not lower the risk of cardiovascular events in high-risk patients with atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD), chronic kidney disease (CKD), and systemic inflammation. Despite significantly reducing levels of inflammatory biomarkers like IL-1β and high-sensitivity CRP, ziltivekimab showed no significant difference in the primary endpoint of cardiovascular death, nonfatal myocardial infarction, or nonfatal stroke over a median follow-up of 33 months.