Does previous hypertension affect outcome in acute heart failure?

Association between hyponatremia and adverse clinical outcomes of heart failure: current evidence based on a systematic review and meta-analysis

Background

Heart failure (HF) is a global health challenge. The perturbations in fluid and electrolyte equilibrium, particularly the compromised sodium balance associated with HF lead to high mortality rates. Hence, elucidating the correlation between serum sodium levels and the prognosis of HF is of paramount importance. This study aimed to conduct a comprehensive meta-analysis to thoroughly investigate the interplay between hyponatremia and the prognostic outlook of individuals with HF.

Methods

A comprehensive search of bibliographic databases including PubMed, Embase, and the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials was conducted to identify relevant observational studies examining the association between hyponatremia and prognosis of HF. Data extraction, synthesis, and assessment of risk of bias were conducted. Meta-analytic methods, sensitivity analyses, and heterogeneity test were employed as appropriate to synthesize the data.

Results

A total of 43,316 patients with HF were included spanning 25 selected studies. The pooled data revealed a notable association between hyponatremia and elevated risks across short and long-term mortality of HF. Specifically, hyponatremia was found to significantly increase the likelihood of all-cause mortality (Hazard ratio [HR] = 1.94, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.78-2.12); 1-year mortality (HR = 1.67, 95%CI: 1.46-1.90); 30-day mortality (HR = 2.03, 95%CI: 1.73-2.25); cardiac mortality (HR = 2.11, 95%CI: 1.81-2.46); and in-hospital mortality (HR = 1.64, 95%CI: 1.15-2.34).

Conclusion

Our meta-analysis emphasizes the significant impact of hyponatremia on mortality in the HF patient population, highlighting the critical importance of maintaining stable serum sodium levels in HF management.

Efficacy of urapidil for the treatment of patients with senile hypertension and acute heart failure

BACKGROUND

Previous clinical studies have reported that urapidil can effectively treat patients with senile hypertension (SH) and acute heart failure (AHF). However, no studies have systematically assessed the efficacy and safety of urapidil for patients with SH and AHF. Thus, this study will investigate the efficacy and safety of urapidil for SH and AHF.

METHODS

In this study, we will search the following electronic databases from inception to the June 30, 2019: MEDLINE, EMBASE, Cochrane Library, Google scholar, Springer, WANGFANG, and China Knowledge Resource Integrated Database. We will search all these electronic databases without language limitations. We will also search grey records to avoid missing potential literature. In this study, only randomized controlled trials on assessing efficacy and safety of urapidil for SH and AHF will be considered. We will use RevMan 5.3 software and STATA 15.0 software to carry out statistical analysis.

RESULTS

This study will evaluate the efficacy and safety of urapidil for SH and AHF by assessing all-cause mortality, change in body weight, urine output, change in serum sodium; and incidence of all adverse events.

CONCLUSION

This study will provide latest evidence of the efficacy and safety of urapidil for patients with SH and AHF.

DISSEMINATION AND ETHICS

This study will only analyze published data; therefore, no ethical approval is needed. The findings of this study will be published at peer-reviewed journals.

SYSTEMATIC REVIEW REGISTRATION

PROSPERO CRD42019139344.

Long-term survival following acute heart failure: the Acute Heart Failure Database Main registry (AHEAD Main)

BACKGROUND

The in-hospital mortality of patients with acute heart failure (AHF) is reported to be 12.7% and mortality on day 30 after admission 17.2%. Less information is known about the long-term prognosis of those patients discharged after hospitalization. As such, the aim of this study was to investigate long-term survival in a cohort of patients who had been hospitalized for AHF and then discharged.

METHODS

The AHEAD Main registry includes 4153 patients hospitalized for AHF in 7 different medical centers, each with its own cathlab, in the Czech Republic. Patient survival rates were evaluated in 3438 patients who had survived to day 30 after admission, and were used as a measurement of long-term survival.

RESULTS

The most common etiologies were acute coronary syndrome (32.3%) and chronic ischemic heart disease (20.1%). The survival rate after day 30 following admission was 79.7% after 1 year and 64.5% after 3 years. No statistically significant difference in syndromes was found in survival after day 30. Independent predictors of a worse prognosis were defined as follows: age>70 years, comorbidities, severe left ventricular systolic dysfunction, valvular disease or ACS as an etiology of AHF. A better prognosis was defined for de-novo AHF patients, and those who were taking ACE inhibitors at the time of discharge. In a sub-analysis, high levels of natriuretic peptides were the most powerful predictors of high-risk, long-term mortality.

CONCLUSION

The AHEAD Main registry provides up-to-date information on the long-term prognosis of patients hospitalized with AHF. The 3-year survival of patients following day 30 of admission was 64.5%. Higher age, LV dysfunction, comorbidities and high levels of natriuretic peptides were the most powerful predictors of worse prognosis in long-term survival.

Development and validation of an acute heart failure-specific mortality predictive model based on administrative data

BACKGROUND

Acute heart failure (AHF) with its high in-hospital mortality is an increasing burden on healthcare systems worldwide, and comparing hospital performance is required for improving hospital management efficiency. However, it is difficult to distinguish patient severity from individual hospital care effects. The aim of this study was to develop a risk adjustment model to predict in-hospital mortality for AHF using routinely available administrative data.

METHODS

Administrative data were extracted from 86 acute care hospitals in Japan. We identified 8620 hospitalized patients with AHF from April 2010 to March 2011. Multivariable logistic regression analyses were conducted to analyze various patient factors that might affect mortality. Two predictive models (models 1 and 2; without and with New York Heart Association functional class, respectively) were developed and bootstrapping was used for internal validation. Expected mortality rates were then calculated for each hospital by applying model 2.

RESULTS

The overall in-hospital mortality rate was 7.1%. Factors independently associated with higher in-hospital mortality included advanced age, New York Heart Association class, and severe respiratory failure. In contrast, comorbid hypertension, ischemic heart disease, and atrial fibrillation/flutter were found to be associated with lower in-hospital mortality. Both model 1 and model 2 demonstrated good discrimination with c-statistics of 0.76 (95% confidence interval, 0.74-0.78) and 0.80 (95% confidence interval, 0.78-0.82), respectively, and good calibration after bootstrap correction, with better results in model 2.

CONCLUSIONS

Factors identifiable from administrative data were able to accurately predict in-hospital mortality. Application of our model might facilitate risk adjustment for AHF and can contribute to hospital evaluations.

The Great East Japan Earthquake Disaster and cardiovascular diseases

AIMS

While previous studies reported a short-term increase in individual cardiovascular disease (CVD) after great earthquakes, mid-term occurrences of all types of CVDs after great earthquakes are unknown. We addressed this important issue in our experience with the Great East Japan Earthquake (11 March 2011).

METHODS AND RESULTS

We retrospectively examined the impact of the Earthquake on the occurrences of CVDs and pneumonia by comparing the ambulance records made by doctors in our Miyagi Prefecture, the centre of the disaster area, during the periods of 2008-11 (n = 124,152). The weekly occurrences of CVDs, including heart failure (HF), acute coronary syndrome (ACS), stroke, cardiopulmonary arrest (CPA), and pneumonia were all significantly increased after the Earthquake compared with the previous 3 years. The occurrences of ACS and CPA showed the rapid increase followed by a sharp decline, whereas those of HF and pneumonia showed a prolonged increase for more than 6 weeks and those of stroke and CPA showed a second peak after the largest aftershock (7 April 2011). Furthermore, the occurrence of CPA was increased in the first 24 h after the Earthquake, followed by other diseases later on. These increases were independent of age, sex, or residence area (seacoast vs. inland).

CONCLUSION

These results indicate that the occurrences of all types of CVDs and pneumonia were increased in somewhat different time courses after the Earthquake, including the first observation of the marked and prolonged increase in HF, emphasizing the importance of intensive medical management of all types of CVDs after great earthquakes.