[Heart failure as a predictor of functional dependence in hospitalized elderly]

Primary care in supplementary health: assessment of costs in the care of older adult patients with heart diseases

OBJECTIVES

to identify whether implementing a supplementary Primary Health Care (PHC) system makes it possible to reduce care costs for older adults with heart diseases.

METHODS

a retrospective cohort of 223 patients with heart disease aged ≥ 60 years. Data were obtained from medical records and cost databases, assessed for a period of one year before and after PHC implementation. The results were expressed as mean absolute frequencies for number of hospitalizations and as average annual expenses expressed in dollars (US$) in relation to cost data.

RESULTS

there was a reduction in hospitalization expenses after implementing supplementary PHC (p=0.01) and a decrease in the frequency of hospitalizations for the entire sample (p=0.006). There was a reduction in the frequency of consultations at the Emergency Room among frail older adults (p=0.011).

CONCLUSIONS

there was a reduction in hospitalization costs and frequency of visits to the Emergency Room after supplementary PHC.

[Using lived experiences and theoretical insights to gain a better understanding of the adaptation difficulties encountered by elderly patients with chronic heart failure during the hospital-to-home transition]

Heart failure is one of the most common reasons for hospitalization in older people, and the hospital-to-home transition can be unsuccessful for these patients. Existing care programs focus primarily on the physiological aspects of the disease and are rarely based on theory. Using Roy's adaptation model (1), the aim of this study was to develop a thorough understanding of the adaptation difficulties and factors that influence how well elderly patients with chronic heart failure cope with the hospital-to-home transition, in order to develop a nursing interventions program. Based on the process proposed by Sidani and Braden (2011), this qualitative descriptive study adopted a deductive approach, with the use of intermediary theories and empirical data, as well as an inductive approach, where older people with chronic heart failure (n=7), caregivers (n=6), and healthcare professionals (n=14) participated in semi-structured individual interviews. The triangulation of data highlights the difficulties and factors influencing adaptation at the physical, psychological, and social levels. Gaining a better understanding of the experience of older people with heart failure when it comes to their transition from hospital to home, and doing so with a holistic vision, provides information for interventions that can contribute to better management of chronic disease and a better quality of life for these elderly patients.

Functional capacity and quality of life of hospitalized octogenarians

OBJECTIVE

To evaluate the ability to perform activities of daily living (ADL) and to correlate functional capacity with quality of life (QoL) of hospitalized octogenarians.

METHOD

A cross-sectional study with 128 patients using the quality of life instruments WHOQOL-OLD and WHOQOL-BREF and the Katz Scale.

RESULTS

The majority of patients was fully dependent; patients with higher schooling had less independence; older adults with partial dependence and independence had higher scores in perceived QoL; in the domains of autonomy, past, present and future activities; and better overall QoL than those with full dependence. Partially dependent patients had higher scores in the death and dying domain than independent patients.

CONCLUSION

Older adults' QoL is associated with the maintenance of autonomy and functional capacity. Older adults experience a health decline during the hospitalization process, due to the limitation in performing their ADL and lack of encouragement by the health team.

Clinical characteristics of heart failure associated with functional dependence at admission in hospitalized elderly

Objective

to identify which clinical features of heart failure are associated with a greater chance of functional dependence for the basic activities of daily living in hospitalized elderly.

Method

cross-sectional study conducted with elderly hospitalized patients. The clinical characteristics of heart failure were assessed by self-report, medical records and scales. Dependency was assessed by the Katz Index. The Fisher’s Exact Test was used to analyze associations between the nominal variables, and logistic regression to identify factors associated with dependence.

Results

the sample consisted of 191 cases. The prevalence of functional dependence was 70.2%. Most of the elderly were partially dependent (66.6%). Clinical characteristics associated with dependence at admission were dyspnea (Odds Ratio 8.5, Confidence Interval 95% 2.668-27.664, p <0.001), lower limb edema (Odds Ratio 5.7, 95% Confidence Interval 2.148-15.571, p <0.001); cough (Odds Ratio 9.0, 95% confidence interval 1.053-76.938, p <0.045); precordial pain (Odds Ratio 4.5, 95% confidence interval 1.125-18.023, p <0.033), and pulmonary crackling (Odds Ratio 4.9, 95% Confidence Interval 1.704-14.094, p <0.003).

Conclusion

functional dependence in admitted elderly patients with heart failure is more associated with congestive signs and symptoms.

Quality of life related to health for heart failure patients

ABSTRACT Objective: To assess the quality of life related to health for heart failure patients and to relate sociodemographic and clinical data. Method: It is an observational and transversal study, with quantitative approach, carried out in a heart failure ambulatory in the state of Pernambuco. Results: In the sample (n=101), there was prevalence of men older than 60 years old, married and professionally inactive. The quality of life related to health, based on the Minnesota Living With Heart Failure Questionnaire, was considered moderate (34.3±21.6), being significantly related to age (p=0.004), functional class (p<0.001), and patients with chagasic cardiopathy (p=0.02). Conclusion: The quality of life in the HF group of chagasic etiology was more compromised, specially in the emotional dimension. It is suggested that studies on the hypothesis that longer ambulatory follow-up improves quality of life and that having Chagas disease interferes negatively with the quality of life of heart failure patients.