| 2. |
- Ekman, Inger, 1952, et al.
(författare)
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Feasibility of a nurse-monitored, outpatient-care programme for elderly patients with moderate-to-severe, chronic heart failure
- 1998
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Ingår i: European Heart Journal. - London, United Kingdom : W. B. Saunders Co. Ltd.. - 0195-668X .- 1522-9645. ; 19:8, s. 1254-60
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Aims: To evaluate the feasibility of a nurse-monitored, outpatient-care program for elderly patients previously hospitalized with chronic heart failure.Methods and results: Patients with chronic heart failure hospitalized in the medical wards were screened to find those eligible for a randomized study to compare the effect of a nurse-monitored, outpatient-care programme aiming at symptom management, with conventional care. The inclusion criteria were patients classified in New York Heart Association classes III-IV, age 65 years, and eligibility for an outpatient follow-up programme. The total in-hospital population of patients discharged with a heart-failure diagnosis was surveyed. Eighty-nine per cent of all the hospitalized patients (n=1541) were 65 years old. Of these, 69% (n=1058) were treated in the medical wards which were screened. The study criteria were met by 158 patients (15%). No visits to the nurse occurred in 23 cases among the 79 patients randomized to the structured-care group (29%), mainly on account of death or fatigue. The numbers of hospitalizations and hospital days did not differ between the structured-care and the usual-care groups.Conclusions: Given the selection criteria and the outline of the interventions, the outpatient, nurse-monitored, symptom-management programme was not feasible for the majority of these elderly patients with moderate-to-severe, chronic heart failure, mainly because of the small proportion of eligible patients and the high drop-out rate. Management of these patients would have to be more adjusted to their home situation.
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| 3. |
- Lindelöw, Björn, et al.
(författare)
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High and low pulmonary vascular resistance in heart transplant candidates. A 5-year follow-up after heart transplantation shows continuous reduction in resistance and no difference in complication rate.
- 1999
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Ingår i: European heart journal. - 0195-668X. ; 20:2, s. 148-56
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- In heart transplantation candidates, high pulmonary vascular resistance has been found to decrease promptly after heart transplantation without any further reduction during follow-up. Pulmonary hypertension has been described as associated with an increased peri- and postoperative complication rate and mortality. This study describes the evolution of pulmonary vascular resistance and the outcome for patients during 5 years following heart transplantation.Haemodynamic data, complication rate and mortality have been analysed during 5-year follow-up in all patients (n = 80) who were heart transplanted at Sahlgrenska University Hospital from 1988 through 1990. We found a significant and continuous reduction in pulmonary vascular resistance both in patients with a pre-operative high (> 3 Wood Units; n = 36), but reversible on nitroprusside, and pre-operative low (< or = 3 Wood Units; n = 44) pulmonary vascular resistance. A multivariate analysis showed that a pre-operative high mean pulmonary artery and low mean pulmonary capillary wedge pressure predicted the decline in pulmonary vascular resistance during 5 years after heart transplantation. The need for a postoperative assist device, complication rate, and early and late mortality were independent of the pre-operative level of pulmonary vascular resistance.A continuous reduction in pulmonary vascular resistance during 5 years following heart transplantation was found in patients with both high, but reversible, and low pre-operative resistance levels. The outcome and survival were independent of the pre-operative pulmonary vascular resistance level.
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