A large international study led by researchers at Karolinska Institutet shows that nearly half of patients hospitalized for acute heart failure in Europe are readmitted within one year. The findings were published in the European Heart Journal.The study analyzed data from more than 10,000 patients across 41 countries between 2018 and 2020. Patients were divided into two groups: those hospitalized for acute heart failure and those treated for chronic heart failure in outpatient care.Results revealed that 5.1 percent of patients admitted with acute heart failure died during their hospital stay. Among survivors, the risk of death during the following year varied depending on heart function, measured by ejection fraction. Patients with reduced ejection fraction faced the highest risk.Within one year, 44 percent of patients with acute heart failure and reduced ejection fraction were readmitted at least once. In comparison, only 18 percent of patients with preserved ejection fraction treated in outpatient settings required readmission. Patients hospitalized for acute heart failure had approximately double the risk of readmission and three times the risk of death compared to those managed without hospitalization.Researchers emphasize the need for close follow-up and individualized care, particularly for patients with acute symptoms and impaired heart function, to reduce future hospitalizations and mortality.
Source:Karolinska Institutet
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