Adherence to the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association guidelines for pharmacotherapy in New York Heart Association Class II-IV heart failure patients and associated re-hospitalization rates.

Abstract

This thesis will assess differences in the rates of re-hospitalization among New York Heart Association class II, III, and IV heart failure patients, focusing on levels of adherence to the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association guidelines for heart failure patient pharmacotherapy. Hospitalization data on 128 HF patients will be analyzed looking at 14 day, 30 day, and 6 month time points, assessing key aspects of treatment and patient characteristics as potential risk factors in predicting re-hospitalization trends. Effectiveness of ACC/AHA adherence to pharmacotherapy upon primary hospital discharge will be itemized in an intention to treat analysis, with guidelines determined by compliance between NYHA classification and ACC/AHA recommendations. Confounding interactions by demographic characteristics including race, sex, and age will be included. This study will gauge the effectiveness of current HF patient care criteria as well as point out potential confounding effects associated with prescribed care previously unaccounted for in the current literature