CHF patients have better outcomes at home
Although inpatient hospital care is common for elderly patients with worsening chronic heart failure (CHF), recent research supports home care over hospital care to avoid complications such as depression and functional decline.1
In a study conducted in Torino, Italy, patients age 75 or older with acute decompensation of chronic heart failure were assigned to either a general medical unit or a physician-supervised home care program. Six months after the start of the study, 15% of the patients in the study group had died, with no significant differences between the two groups.
Although both groups of patients required re-hospitalization or transfer to a different unit for specialized care, the average time before the first re-hospitalization was 84.3 days for the home care group compared to 69.8 days for the inpatient group. The most significant difference between outcomes for the two groups was the improvement in depression, nutritional status, and quality-of-life scores for the home care group, according to the authors.
Reference
1. Tibaldi V, Isaia G, Scarafiotti C. Hospital at home for elderly patients with acute decompensation of chronic heart failure. Arch Intern Med 2009; 169:1569-1575.
Although inpatient hospital care is common for elderly patients with worsening chronic heart failure (CHF), recent research supports home care over hospital care to avoid complications such as depression and functional decline.You have reached your article limit for the month. Subscribe now to access this article plus other member-only content.
- Award-winning Medical Content
- Latest Advances & Development in Medicine
- Unbiased Content