Iron Deficiency is a Key Determinant of Health-Related Quality of Life in Patients with Chronic Heart Failure Regardless of Anaemia Status

AIMS: To evaluate the effect of iron deficiency (ID) and/or anaemia on health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in patients with chronic heart failure (CHF). METHODS AND RESULTS: We undertook a post-hoc analysis of a cohort of CHF patients in a single-centre study evaluating cognitive function. At recruitment, patients provided baseline information and completed the Minnesota Living with Heart Failure questionnaire (MLHFQ) for HRQoL (higher scores reflect worse HRQoL). At the same time, blood samples were taken for serological evaluation. ID was defined as serum ferritin levels 0.05). Increased levels of soluble transferrin receptor were also associated with impaired HRQoL (P ≤ 0.001). Adjusting for haemoglobin and C-reactive protein, ID was more pronounced in patients with anaemia compared with those without (P < 0.001). CONCLUSION: In patients with CHF, ID but not anaemia was associated with reduced HRQoL, mostly due to physical factors.