The Early High Risk Period for Patients With Heart Failure
The Early High Risk Period for Patients With Heart Failure
Many people with heart failure either die or are admitted to the hospital in the first few
 months after the condition is diagnosed. The reasons for this are currently unclear- but may
 be due to worsening heart failure or other medical conditions such as angina, heart attack or
 sudden electrical problems of the heart. The investigators propose to recruit and follow-up
 450 people, with a new diagnosis of heart failure for a minimum of six months in a
 multi-centre observational study at two hospital sites: The Hillingdon (Uxbridge) and The
 Conquest (Hastings) hospitals. The total study duration will be two years. People will be
 recruited after a diagnosis of heart failure is made and the study will assess reasons for
 death or admission to hospital and the psychological impact of the condition on both patients
 and their carers. This is an observational study and no change will be made to patients'
 conventional treatment.

 Hypotheses:

 1. The high mortality and hospitalisation rate in the early period after diagnosis of heart
 failure is related to progressive pump failure; or

 2. The high mortality in the early period after the diagnosis of heart failure is related
 to co-morbid events- principally major coronary events such as myocardial infarction or
 acute coronary syndrome.

 This research should help to identify ways of improving the outlook for people with newly
 diagnosed heart failure. The analysis of the data generated by this study will be supervised
 by a statistician. Clinical and demographic data will be described using mean + standard
 deviation, for continuous variables, and absolute numbers and percentages for categorical
 variables. Group differences will be examined by t-tests for continuous variables and
 Chi-square (x2) test for categorical variables. Survival will be reported in terms of
 Kaplan-Meier curves with differences analysed by Cox proportional hazards.
Inclusion Criteria:

 -  Clinical diagnosis of heart failure

 Exclusion Criteria:

 -  Under age of 18 years

 -  Unable to give consent