Decompensated Chronic Heart Failure

DESIGN: A prospective, multicenter, observational cohort study including 580 patients admitted for acute decompensated heart failure (ADHF). Ultrasound assessment of congestion (VExUS and LUS) will be performed serially during admission: within 48 hours of admission, at the time diuretic therapy is switched from intravenous to oral, and on the day of discharge. The discharge assessment will serve as the primary predictor. Treating physicians will be blinded to all ultrasound findings. Patients will be followed for 90 days by telephone follow-up and chart review for the primary endpoint, with extended chart review at one year for selected secondary endpoints. AIMS: To determine whether combined ultrasound assessment of venous (VExUS) and pulmonary congestion (LUS) at discharge predicts heart failure readmission and all-cause mortality in patients hospitalized with ADHF. HYPOTHESIS: Abnormal VExUS and/or LUS findings at discharge are associated with a higher risk of heart failure readmission and all-cause mortality after 90 days. PRIMARY ENDPOINT: The primary endpoint is a composite of heart failure readmission and all-cause mortality (time-to-event analysis) after a 90-day period (chart review). Abnormal VExUS will be defined according to criteria from our ongoing validation study. Abnormal LUS is defined as ≥3 B-lines in ≥2 scanning zones per hemithorax (8-zone method) or ≥15 total B-lines overall. The primary analysis will evaluate the association between discharge VExUS and LUS findings and the risk of 90-day heart failure readmission and all-cause mortality using Cox proportional hazards regression. Models will be adjusted for age, sex, and comorbidities. SECONDARY ENDPOINTS: 1. DAOH within 90 days and one year after discharge 2. All-cause mortality within 90 days and one year after discharge 3. Rehospitalization for ADHF within 90 days and one year after discharge 4. Association between discharge VExUS and markers of congestion, including objective markers (jugular venous pressure, peripheral edema, pulmonary rales, and weight change), NT-proBNP, renal function, and echocardiographic measures of cardiac function. 5. Incremental prognostic value of discharge VExUS and LUS beyond standard clinical assessment of congestion (jugular venous pressure, peripheral edema, pulmonary rales, and weight change) for predicting 90-day and one-year heart-failure readmission and all-cause mortality. 6. Post-discharge diuretic use, defined as the change in loop diuretic dose (furosemide-equivalent) from discharge to 30- and 90-day follow-up, and occurrence of diuretic intensification (dose increase or addition of thiazide-type diuretic) within 90 days. Secondary analyses will employ Cox models for time-to-event outcomes (readmission, mortality, diuretic intensification) and linear regression for continuous outcomes (DAOH, change in diuretic dose). The relationship between discharge VExUS/LUS and post-discharge diuretic use will be evaluated both continuously (dose change) and categorically (intensification vs. no intensification). Incremental prognostic value beyond clinical and biochemical markers (e.g., NT-proBNP) will be assessed using nested model comparisons (likelihood ratio tests, AIC, C-index, NRI, IDI). INCLUSION CRITERIA: 1. Adults (≥18 years) admitted with ADHF. 2. Clinical evidence of congestion during admission, indicated by ≥1 of the following: pitting peripheral edema, ascites, elevated jugular venous pressure, or radiologic/ultrasound evidence of pulmonary congestion. 3. Treatment with ≥40 mg i.v. furosemide or equivalent dose loop diuretic during admission. EXCLUSION CRITERIA: 1. Pregnancy 2. Moribund 3. Solitary kidney 4. Inability to provide written consent

Patients hospitalized for acute cardiac conditions-including acute myocardial infarction, acute heart failure, pulmonary embolism, arrhythmias, and hypertensive emergencies-represent a heterogeneous population at very high risk of recurrent cardiovascular events. Influenza infection may act as a trigger for adverse cardiovascular events. Given the persistently low influenza vaccination uptake despite evidence-based benefits observed in vulnerable populations, including patients with cardiac conditions, new strategies to improve vaccination coverage are being explored. Recently, increasing attention has been directed toward an approach already used in fields such as neonatology, where vaccinations are administered prior to hospital discharge. In this investigator-initiated, single-center, randomized, open-label interventional study, we will evaluate whether influenza vaccination administered within 24 hours before hospital discharge in patients hospitalized for acute cardiac conditions is safe and effective in reducing subsequent infections, cardiovascular events, and mortality during the 6 months following hospitalization.

This is a prospective, observational pilot study designed to develop a mathematical algorithm capable of predicting decompensation of congestive heart failure (dCHF) using physiologic data collected from a non-invasive wearable device. Participants with a remote hemodynamic pulmonary artery pressure monitor will wear a wearable device continuously for up to 12 months. Wearable data will be analyzed in relation to the hemodynamic monitor defined sentinel events of heart failure decompensation to identify predictive signal patterns. Optional biospecimen (DNA, blood, urine) and voice sample collection will support future biomarker discovery.