Key result
Unrecognized HF diagnosis is not associated with mortality or hospitalization in older patients.
Why the study?
Health literacy and recognition of disease names are considered important prognostic determinants in patients with heart failure, but the association with prognosis is unclear.
Is disease name recognition an independent determinant of prognosis in older hospitalized patients with heart failure?
Cohort (n=188)
Is disease name recognition an independent determinant of prognosis in older hospitalized patients with heart failure?
Although a substantial proportion (38%) of older hospitalized heart failure patients do not recognize their primary diagnosis, this lack of recognition is not an independent predictor of adverse outcomes when accounting for age, cognitive function, and disease severity.
Diagnosis recognition should not yet inform prognosis or interventions in older HF; leaves open whether targeted education improves outcomes beyond cognitive and severity factors.
Objective Health literacy is considered a prognostic determinant for patients with heart failure (HF), and the recognition of disease names could be fundamental to this. This study examined the proportion of patients with HF who recognized their disease name and its association with prognosis. Methods From January 2021 to June 2023, 188 hospitalized patients with HF (Stage B–D, median age 81 years) were asked to recall their disease name before discharge. Recognition accuracy was evaluated using a standardized scoring system, and interobserver agreement was confirmed. In a subset, communicative and critical health literacy (CCHL) was assessed. Prognostic outcomes included all‐cause mortality and all‐cause hospitalization after discharge. Results The recognition score showed high interobserver reliability ( κ = 0.85). Seventy‐two patients (38%) failed to recognize their primary diagnosis. Those without recognition had significantly lower CCHL scores than those with recognition ( p < 0.01). During a median follow‐up of 280 days, 76 patients (40%) experienced adverse events. In univariate analyses, lack of diagnosis recognition was associated with an increased risk of adverse outcomes, but this association disappeared after adjustment for age, cognitive function, and HF severity. Conclusion A substantial number of older patients with HF did not recognize their primary diagnosis, but disease recognition was not an independent determinant of prognosis.
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Tasaka et al. (2026) conducted a cohort in Heart Failure (n=188). Lack of disease name recognition vs. Disease name recognition was evaluated on All-cause mortality and all-cause hospitalization after discharge. Failure to recognize their primary diagnosis occurred in 38% of older heart failure patients but was not independently associated with all-cause mortality or hospitalization.
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