Title
Epidemiology of decompensated heart failure in a single community in the northeastern United States
UMMS Affiliation
Department of Medicine, Division of Cardiovascular Medicine; Department of Medicine, Division of Geriatric Medicine; Department of Emergency Medicine
Date
7-21-2009
Document Type
Article
Medical Subject Headings
Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Angiotensin II Type 1 Receptor Blockers; Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme Inhibitors; Diuretics; Female; Heart Failure; Hospitalization; Humans; Male; Severity of Illness Index; United States
Disciplines
Bioinformatics | Biostatistics | Epidemiology | Health Services Research
Abstract
Limited data are available describing the clinical characteristics, hospital treatment practices, and hospital and long-term death rates of patients hospitalized with decompensated heart failure (HF). To examine the descriptive epidemiology of acute HF in residents of a large New England metropolitan area during the 2 study years of 1995 and 2000, we reviewed the medical records of patients hospitalized with acute HF at 11 medical centers in the Worcester, Massachusetts, metropolitan area during 1995 and 2000 for purposes of collecting information about patients' sociodemographic and clinical characteristics, hospital management approaches, and hospital and postdischarge mortalities. The mean age of 4,537 residents of the Worcester metropolitan area hospitalized with decompensated HF was 76 years, 57% were women, and most study patients had been previously diagnosed with several co-morbidities. The average duration of hospitalization was 6.3 days and 6.8% of patients died during hospitalization. Diuretics (98%) and angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors/angiotensin receptor blockers (54%) were the most common medications used to treat acutely ill patients. The 1- and 5-year death rates of hospital survivors were 39% and 77%, respectively, with no change observed in these death rates between our 2 study years. In conclusion, the results of this observational study in residents of a central New England metropolitan area provide insights into the characteristics, treatment practices, and short- and long-term death rates associated with this increasingly prevalent clinical syndrome.
Rights and Permissions
Citation: Am J Cardiol. 2009 Aug 1;104(3):377-82. Epub 2009 Jun 6. Link to article on publisher's site
