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      Cardiac asthma in elderly patients: incidence, clinical presentation and outcome

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          Abstract

          Background

          Cardiac asthma is common, but has been poorly investigated. The objective was to compare the characteristics and outcome of cardiac asthma with that of classical congestive heart failure (CHF) in elderly patients.

          Methods

          Prospective study in an 1,800-bed teaching hospital.

          Results

          Two hundred and twelve consecutive patients aged ≥ 65 years presenting with dyspnea due to CHF (mean age of 82 ± 8 years) were included. Findings of cardiac echocardiography and natriuretic peptides levels were used to confirm CHF. Cardiac asthma patients were defined as a patient with CHF and wheezing reported by attending physician upon admission to the emergency department. The CHF group (n = 137) and the cardiac asthma group (n = 75), differed for tobacco use (34% vs. 59%, p < 0.05), history of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (16% vs. 47%, p < 0.05), peripheral arterial disease (10% vs. 24%, p < 0.05). Patients with cardiac asthma had a significantly lower pH (7.38 ± 0.08 vs. 7.43 ± 0.06, p < 0.05), and a higher PaCO 2 (47 ± 15 vs. 41 ± 11 mmHg, p < 0.05) at admission. In the cardiac asthma group, patients had greater distal airway obstruction: forced expiratory volume in 1 second of 1.09 vs. 1.33 Liter (p < 0.05), and a forced expiratory flow at 25% to 75% of vital capacity of 0.76 vs. 0.99 Liter (p < 0.05). The in-hospital (23% vs. 19%) and one year mortality (48% vs. 43%) rates were similar.

          Conclusion

          Patients with cardiac asthma represented one third of CHF in elderly patients. They were more hypercapnic and experienced more distal airway obstruction. However, outcomes were similar.

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          Most cited references30

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          Global strategy for the diagnosis, management, and prevention of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. NHLBI/WHO Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease (GOLD) Workshop summary.

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            The EuroHeart Failure survey programme-- a survey on the quality of care among patients with heart failure in Europe. Part 1: patient characteristics and diagnosis.

            The European Society of Cardiology (ESC) has published guidelines for the investigation of patients with suspected heart failure and, if the diagnosis is proven, their subsequent management. Hospitalisation provides a key point of care at which time diagnosis and treatment may be refined to improve outcome for a group of patients with a high morbidity and mortality. However, little international data exists to describe the features and management of such patients. Accordingly, the EuroHeart Failure survey was conducted to ascertain if appropriate tests were being performed with which to confirm or refute a diagnosis of heart failure and how this influenced subsequent management. The survey screened consecutive deaths and discharges during 2000-2001 predominantly from medical wards over a 6-week period in 115 hospitals from 24 countries belonging to the ESC, to identify patients with known or suspected heart failure. A total of 46788 deaths and discharges were screened from which 11327 (24%) patients were enrolled with suspected or confirmed heart failure. Forty-seven percent of those enrolled were women. Fifty-one percent of women and 30% of men were aged >75 years. Eighty-three percent of patients had a diagnosis of heart failure made on or prior to the index admission. Heart failure was the principal reason for admission in 40%. The great majority of patients (>90%) had had an ECG, chest X-ray, haemoglobin and electrolytes measured as recommended in ESC guidelines, but only 66% had ever had an echocardiogram. Left ventricular ejection fraction had been measured in 57% of men and 41% of women, usually by echocardiography (84%) and was <40% in 51% of men but only in 28% of women. Forty-five percent of women and 22% of men were reported to have normal left ventricular systolic function by qualitative echocardiographic assessment. A substantial proportion of patients had alternative explanations for heart failure other than left ventricular systolic or diastolic dysfunction, including valve disease. Within 12 weeks of discharge, 24% of patients had been readmitted. A total of 1408 of 10434 (13.5%) patients died between admission and 12 weeks follow-up. Known or suspected heart failure comprises a large proportion of admissions to medical wards and such patients are at high risk of early readmission and death. Many of the basic investigations recommended by the ESC were usually carried out, although it is not clear whether this was by design or part of a general routine for all patients being admitted regardless of diagnosis. The investigation most specific for patients with suspected heart failure (echocardiography) was performed less frequently, suggesting that the diagnosis of heart failure is still relatively neglected. Most men but a minority of women who underwent investigation of cardiac function had evidence of moderate or severe left ventricular dysfunction, the main target of current advances in the treatment of heart failure. Considerable diagnostic uncertainty remains for many patients with suspected heart failure, even after echocardiography, which must be resolved in order to target existing and new therapies and services effectively.
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              The N-terminal Pro-BNP investigation of dyspnea in the emergency department (PRIDE) study.

              The utility of aminoterminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) testing in the emergency department to rule out acute congestive heart failure (CHF) and the optimal cutpoints for this use are not established. We conducted a prospective study of 600 patients who presented in the emergency department with dyspnea. The clinical diagnosis of acute CHF was determined by study physicians who were blinded to NT-proBNP results. The primary end point was a comparison of NT-proBNP results with the clinical assessment of the managing physician for identifying acute CHF. The median NT-proBNP level among 209 patients (35%) who had acute CHF was 4,054 versus 131 pg/ml among 390 patients (65%) who did not (p 450 pg/ml for patients 900 pg/ml for patients >or=50 years of age were highly sensitive and specific for the diagnosis of acute CHF (p <0.001). An NT-proBNP level <300 pg/ml was optimal for ruling out acute CHF, with a negative predictive value of 99%. Increased NT-proBNP was the strongest independent predictor of a final diagnosis of acute CHF (odds ratio 44, 95% confidence interval 21.0 to 91.0, p <0.0001). NT-proBNP testing alone was superior to clinical judgment alone for diagnosing acute CHF (p = 0.006); NT-proBNP plus clinical judgment was superior to NT-proBNP or clinical judgment alone. NT-proBNP measurement is a valuable addition to standard clinical assessment for the identification and exclusion of acute CHF in the emergency department setting.
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                Author and article information

                Journal
                BMC Cardiovasc Disord
                BMC Cardiovascular Disorders
                BioMed Central (London )
                1471-2261
                2007
                14 May 2007
                : 7
                : 16
                Affiliations
                [1 ]Department of Emergency Medicine and Surgery, Centre Hospitalo-Universitaire (CHU) Pitié-Salpêtrière, Assistance-Publique Hôpitaux de Paris (AP-HP), 47–83 boulevard de l'Hopital, 75013 Paris, Université Pierre et Marie Curie-Paris 6, France
                [2 ]Laboratory of pulmonary fonction test, Centre Hospitalo-Universitaire (CHU) Pitié-Salpêtrière, Assistance-Publique Hôpitaux de Paris (AP-HP), 47–83 boulevard de l'Hopital, 75013 Paris, Université Denis Diderot and UPRES 2397, France
                [3 ]Department of cardiology. Centre Hospitalo-Universitaire (CHU) Pitié-Salpêtrière, Assistance-Publique Hôpitaux de Paris (AP-HP), 47–83 boulevard de l'Hopital, 75013 Paris, Université Pierre et Marie Curie-Paris 6, France
                Article
                1471-2261-7-16
                10.1186/1471-2261-7-16
                1878501
                17498318
                c810a9aa-748d-4a3f-abc3-93b23d11eb94
                Copyright © 2007 Jorge et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd.

                This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License ( http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

                History
                : 27 February 2007
                : 14 May 2007
                Categories
                Research Article

                Cardiovascular Medicine
                Cardiovascular Medicine

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