Chyun, Deborah

Background: Individual symptoms are predictors of mortality in adults with heart failure (HF). However, symptom clusters may be more predictive of future risks than isolated symptoms, yet research on these symptom clusters in older adults with HF is limited. Aims: To explore the extent to which symptom cluster profiles predict all-cause mortality among community-dwelling older adults with HF, while adjusting for known risk factors. Methods: We conducted a secondary analysis of data of the 2008 to 2016 surveys of the U.S. Health and Retirement Study using latent class analysis to identify baseline cluster profiles, and survival analysis for time to death with Cox proportional hazard (Cox PH) models, and Kaplan Meier survival analyses. Results: We included 684 participants [mean age=74.9, (SD=10) years, 56.6% female, 16.2% Black/African American]. Three baseline symptom cluster profiles were identified: high-burden (pain, shortness of breath, fatigue, swelling, depressive symptoms, dizziness), low-burden, and cardiopulmonary-depressive (shortness of breath, pain, and dizziness). The estimated median time-to-death was 71 (95% CI=64, 79) months. Of the 364 participants in the cardiopulmonary-depressive profile, 240 (65.9%) died (median time= 65 months, 95% CI= 55, 73) compared to those in the low-burden profile, of which 49% died. Approximately 61% in the high burden profile died (median time=67 months, 95% CI= 51, 90). A significant difference in survival times between the 3 cluster profiles was found (Log-rank= 9.13, p = 0.01). In the adjusted Cox PH model, participants in the high symptom burden and respiratory-depressive distress profiles had adjusted HR of 1.48 (95% CI=1.15, 1.94) and 1.44 (95% CI=1.14, 1.80) compared to those in the low burden symptom cluster profile, after controlling for age, gender, smoking, and comorbidities. Conclusions: The identified symptom cluster profiles predict 8-year all-cause mortality in older adults with HF, after controlling for known risk factors. An evaluation of symptom clusters, rather than individual symptoms, may provide additive prognostic information.

Abstract Background Heart failure (HF) has a high mortality risk in older adults. Individual symptoms as predictors of mortality in HF patients; however, symptoms often manifest in clusters, which may be more predictive of future risks than isolated symptoms. However, research on symptom clusters in older adults who have HF is limited. To explore the extent to which symptom cluster profiles predict all-cause mortality among older adults with HF, while adjusting for demographic and clinical factors. Methods A secondary study was conducted using the data from the Health and Retirement Study. We measured six symptoms (fatigue, shortness of breath, pain, swelling, depressive symptoms, and dizziness), and used latent class analysis to identify baseline symptom cluster profile. We performed survival analysis for time to death with Kaplan Meier survival analyses and Cox Proportional Hazard models. Results The sample included 684 participants (mean age = 74.9 (SD = 10.0) years) who demonstrated three symptom cluster profiles (high-burden, low-burden, and cardiopulmonary-depressive). The estimated median time-to-death was 71 (95% CI= [64, 79]) months. Participants in the high symptom burden and respiratory-depressive distress profiles had adjusted hazard ratios of 1.48 (95% CI = 1.15, 1.94) and 1.44 (95% CI = 1.14, 1.80) for time to death compared to those in the low burden profile. Conclusion Symptom profiles can assist in identifying older adults with HF who are at risk for earlier mortality. Further research is needed to determine whether alleviating these symptom clusters decreases the risk of mortality.

The incidence and prevalence of most cardiovascular disorders increase with age, and cardiovascular disease ( CVD ) is the leading cause of death and major disability in adults aged 75 and older. Despite the effect of CVD on quality of life, morbidity, and mortality in older adults, individuals aged 75 and older have been markedly underrepresented in most major cardiovascular trials, and virtually all trials have excluded older adults with complex comorbidities, significant physical or cognitive disabilities, frailty, or residence in nursing homes and assisted living facilities. As a result, current guidelines are unable to provide evidence‐based recommendations for diagnosis and treatment of older adults typical of those encountered in routine clinical practice. The objectives of this scientific statement are to summarize current guideline recommendations as they apply to older adults, identify critical gaps in knowledge that preclude informed evidence‐based decision‐making, and recommend future research to close existing knowledge gaps. To achieve these objectives, a detailed review was conducted of current American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association ( ACC / AHA ) and American Stroke Association ( ASA ) guidelines to identify content and recommendations that explicitly targeted older adults. A pervasive lack of evidence to guide clinical decision‐making in older adults with CVD was found, as well as a paucity of data on the effect of diagnostic and therapeutic interventions on outcomes that are particularly important to older adults, such as quality of life, physical function, and maintenance of independence. Accordingly, there is a critical need for a multitude of large population‐based studies and clinical trials that include a broad spectrum of older adults representative of those seen in clinical practice and that incorporate relevant outcomes important to older adults in the study design. The results of these studies will provide the foundation for future evidence‐based guidelines applicable to older adults and enhance person‐centered care of older individuals with CVD in the United States and around the world.