Prognostic Factors in Patients with Chronic Heart Failure at the Maroua Regional Hospital, Cameroon

Introduction: Heart failure (HF) is a complex and serious condition that greatly impairs the quality of life of patients with high lethality. It is a major public health problem and is the leading cause of hospitalization for people over 60-65 years old. The therapeutic approach of HF has evolved considerably, allowing its prognosis to be improved. The aim of our study was to analyze the evolution of HF and to identify the predictive factors of mortality and re-hospitalization of patients with chronic heart failure at the Regional Hospital of Maroua. Methods: We carried out a prospective analytical study over a period of 8 months at the Maroua Regional Hospital (MRH). All patients followed in cardiology for chronic heart failure were included. Clinical and paraclinical data were collected on admission. The patients were followed for a period of 6 months and the primary study endpoint was the occurrence of cardiac death and/or re-hospitalization for heart failure. Results: The mean age of our patients was 54.5 ± 15.59 years with a male predominance. Arterial hypertension was the main etiology (58.2%) of heart failure. The re-hospitalization rate was 4.1% and the mortality rate was 3.7%. Multivariate analysis revealed three independent mortality factors: Dyspnea stage IV of the NYHA, LVEF<40%, and hemoglobin level less than 12g/dl. Stage IV dyspnea and left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) <40% were independent predictors of rehospitalization; Conclusion: In our context, the factors of poor prognosis in patients followed for chronic heart failure are impaired LVEF, NYHA stage IV dyspnea and anemia. In patients with these different factors, close and targeted care should be instituted to reduce morbidity and mortality.