Does the presence of sarcopenia and frailty impact congestion and early readmissions in patients with decompensated heart failure?
In patients with acute heart failure, sarcopenia associated with muscle dysfunction is linked to worse congestion and higher rates of early readmission.
AIMS: The interplay between sarcopenia and frailty is difficult to delimit and has been little analysed in patients with acute heart failure (HF). This work aims to describe the relationship between sarcopenia and frailty and analyse its impact on congestion and early outcomes. METHODS: This is a single-centre observational study. Patients with decompensated HF were classified based on presence of sarcopenia and on presence of frailty. Patients with sarcopenia were analysed in terms of plasma volume variations or natriuretic peptides. A correlation analysis between patients with sarcopenia and functional, cognitive, depression, nutritional and frailty status was performed. The influence of both sarcopenia and frailty on early readmissions was also analysed. RESULTS: = 0.01). CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of sarcopenia and frailty can vary within a population of patients with HF. Sarcopenia associated with muscle dysfunction but not with other domains of frailty determined a poorer congestive status and a higher early readmission rate.
Lorido et al. (2026) studied this question.