• B Amores Arriaga, C Josa Laorden, V Garcés Horna, M Sánchez Marteles, P Sampériz Legarre, F Ruiz Laiglesia, J Rubio Gracia, R Torres Cabrero, M Nadal Ibor, and J I Pérez Calvo.
• Servicio de Medicina Interna, Hospital Clínico Universitario Lozano Blesa, Zaragoza, España; Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria de Aragón, Zaragoza, España; Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de Zaragoza, Zaragoza, España. Electronic address: amoresarriaga@yahoo.es.
• Rev Clin Esp. 2020 Aug 1; 220 (6): 323-330.

BackgroundDespite advances in the diagnosis and treatment of heart failure (HF), the condition still has high morbidity and mortality. Health education and the treatment of comorbidities have been shown to be effective, as has multidisciplinary care in specialised units, although this involves organisational and structural efforts that are not always feasible. We present the results of a simple outpatient consultation, focused on the specialised care of HF.Patients And MethodsThe consultation included patients discharged after hospitalisation (index hospitalisation) for decompensated HF from an internal medicine department. The follow-up was conducted by internists especially dedicated (not exclusively) to HF and a nurse partially dedicated to HF. The follow-up consisted of fixed visits 1, 3, 6 and 12 months after the discharge, with more visits on demand if needed.ResultsA total of 250 patients were included with a minimum follow-up of 1 year. The reduction in hospitalisations and emergency department visits was 56% and 61% (P<.05), respectively, for HF and 46% and 40% (P<.05), respectively, for any cause. Treatment optimisation was also achieved, with a significant increase in the evidence-based drug prescription rate and the reduction of other drugs, such as calcium antagonists.ConclusionA simple model based on a specialised care consultation for HF is effective in reducing readmissions and optimising the treatment. The lack of healthcare resources should not be an obstacle for specialised care for patients with HF.Copyright © 2019 Elsevier España, S.L.U. and Sociedad Española de Medicina Interna (SEMI). All rights reserved.

10 keywords...

hide…