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- Jaarsma, T, et al.
(författare)
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[Value of basic and intensive management of patients with heart failure; results of a randomised controlled clinical trial]
- 2008
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Ingår i: Nederlandsch tijdschrift voor geneeskunde. - 0028-2162 .- 1876-8784. ; 152:37, s. 2016-21
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- OBJECTIVE: To determine the efficacy of 2 nurse-directed programmes of different intensity for the counselling and follow-up of patients hospitalised for heart failure, compared with standard care by a cardiologist. DESIGN: Multicentre randomised clinical trial (www.trialregister.nl: NCT 98675639). METHOD: A total of 1023 patients were randomized after hospitalisation for heart failure to 1 of 3 treatment strategies: standard care provided by a cardiologist, follow-up care from a cardiologist with basic counselling and support by a nurse specialising in heart failure, or follow-up care from a cardiologist with intensive counselling and support by a nurse specialising in heart failure. Primary end points were the time to rehospitalisation due to heart failure or death and the number of days lost to rehospitalisation or death during the 18-month study period. Data were analysed on an intent-to-treat basis. RESULTS: Mean patient age was 71 years, 38% were women, 50% had mild heart failure and 50% had severe heart failure. During the study, 411 patients (40%) were rehospitalised due to heart failure or died from any cause: 42% in the control group, and 41% and 38% in the basic and intensive support groups, respectively (differences not significant). The time to rehospitalisation or death was similar in the 3 groups: hazard ratios for the basic and intensive support groups versus the control group were 0.96 (95% CI: 0.76-1.21; p = 0.73) and 0.93 (95% CI: 0.73-1.17; p = 0.53), respectively. The number of days lost to rehospitalisation or death was 39,960 in the control group; this number was 15% less in the intervention groups, but the difference was not significant. However, there was a trend toward lower mortality in the intervention groups. In all 3 groups, more visits occurred than planned, which may have had a considerable effect on care, notably in the control group. CONCLUSION: The results of this study indicated that the provision of additional counselling and support by a nurse specialising in heart failure as an adjuvant to intensive follow-up care provided by a cardiologist does not always lead to a reduction in rehospitalisation frequency.
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- Luttik, Marie Louise, et al.
(författare)
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Quality of life and depressive symptoms in heart failure patients and their partners : the impact of role and gender.
- 2009
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Ingår i: Journal of Cardiac Failure. - : Elsevier BV. - 1071-9164 .- 1532-8414. ; 15:7, s. 580-5
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BACKGROUND: Partners of heart failure (HF) patients are important in the course and management of the disease. It is unclear whether HF affects the quality of life (QoL) of partners as much as it affects the QoL of patients. METHODS AND RESULTS: The study aims to determine the influence of role (patient or partner) and gender on quality of life (QoL) and depressive symptoms in HF patients and their partners. Using a cross-sectional design, data on demographics, QoL, and depressive symptoms were collected from 393 HF patients (age, 68+/-11; 76% male) and their partners (age, 67+/-12; 24% male) using questionnaires (Medical Outcome Study 36-item General Health Survey [RAND-36], Cantril Ladder of Life, and Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale) that were send at home. At a group level HF, patients reported a significantly worse QoL and more depressive symptoms compared with their partners. When examining the influence of role and gender a significant interaction between role and gender was found. QoL in terms of general well-being of female HF partners and female HF patients did not differ (7.0 vs. 6.9), whereas male partners had a significantly higher well-being compared to male HF patients (7.6 vs. 6.8). Most of the RAND-36 domains were explained by role (either being a patient or a partner) with patients having lower scores compared with their partners. However, the RAND-36 domain mental health was mainly explained by gender, with women reporting worse mental health compared with men, independent of their role as a patient or a partner. The same trend was found for the presence of depressive symptoms. CONCLUSIONS: Females, either as patients or as partners are vulnerable in their response to HF in terms of their QoL. The QoL of male partners does not seem to be negatively affected. Supporting couples who are dealing with HF requires different interventions for male and female patients and their partners.
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