Impacts of Predischarge Diastolic Functional Recovery on Clinical Outcomes in Patients With Hypertensive Heart Failure

BACKGROUND: Diastolic function is an independent predictor of death in heart failure (HF), but the effect of a change in diastolic function during hospitalization on clinical outcomes in patients with hypertensive HF (HHF) has been poorly studied. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the effect of predischarge diastolic functional recovery (DFR) on future clinical outcomes in hospitalized patients with a first diagnosis of HHF. METHODS AND RESULTS: A total of 175 hospitalized patients with HHF were divided into 2 groups according to the change in diastolic function on predischarge echocardiography in comparison with baseline echocardiography: DFR group (n=74, 54.2±17.1 years, 55 males) vs. no DFR group (n=101, 59.1±16.8 years, 72 males). During 66.5±37 months of clinical follow-up, major adverse cardiac events (MACE) occurred in 89 patients: 85 HF rehospitalizations, 4 deaths, no MI. The number of MACE were significantly higher in the no DFR group than in the DFR group (61.6% vs. 32.4%, P<0.001). Predischarge systolic functional recovery was not a predictor of MACE, but impaired DFR was an independent predictor of MACE (RR=2.952, P=0.010, confidence interval, 1.878-6.955). CONCLUSIONS: Impaired predischarge DFR, regardless of the type of HF or predischarge systolic functional recovery, is an independent predictor of future MACE in HHF. Changes in diastolic function should be carefully monitored and would be useful in risk stratification of HHF.