Left ventricular ejection fraction in patients with heart failure referred for evaluation in a cardiology hospital

• Grant number: 07/01101-4
• Support type: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Effective date (Start): July 01, 2007
• Effective date (End): June 30, 2009
• Field of knowledge: Health Sciences - Medicine - Medical Clinics
• Principal researcher: Alfredo José Mansur
• Grantee: Rodrigo Akio Azuma
• Home Institution: Instituto do Coração Professor Euryclides de Jesus Zerbini (INCOR). Hospital das Clínicas da Faculdade de Medicina da USP (HCFMUSP). Secretaria da Saúde (São Paulo - Estado). São Paulo , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Patients with heart failure may have ejection fraction preserved or decreased. Preserved left ventricle ejection fraction in patients with heart failure was observed between 24% and 62% of the patients in previous studies, and associated with different demographic and clinical variables. There are few Brazilian reports on the distribution of left ventricle ejection fraction in patients with the diagnosis of heart failure. We formulated the hypothesis that preserved left ventricle ejection fraction may be also frequent in outpatients with the diagnosis of heart failure referred for evaluation in the outpatient clinics of a hospital dedicated to cardiology. This study aims to evaluate left ventricle ejection fraction estimated by echocardiography relative to demographic and clinical variables in patients referred for evaluation in an outpatient department of a hospital dedicated to cardiology. We will evaluate 3600 consecutive outpatients with the diagnosis of heart failure referred for evaluation. The left ventricle ejection fraction on echocardiography will be studied relative to: age, body mass index, smoking, alcoholism, heart rate, blood pressure, etiology of the heart failure, co-morbidities, cardiac rhythm, dimensions of cardiac chambers on echocardiogram, hemoglobin, hematocrit, leukocyte count, serum creatinin, fasting blood glucose, total cholesterol and lipoproteins, triglycerides, prescribed drug treatment and outcome.