Clinical characteristics and outcome of acute decompensated heart failure [ADHF] patients in Adan hospital, Kuwait

To determine the prevalence of acute decompensated heart failure [ADHF] among the acute medical admissions in Adan Hospital, Kuwait, and describe their clinical characteristics and in-hospital mortality. Prospective study. Medical wards and coronary care unit at Adan Hospital, Kuwait. All adult patients admitted from 18[th] of September to 17[th] of November 2008 with the diagnosis of ADHF. Echocardiography. Determination of the prevalence of ADHF among medical admissions, their clinical features, and their in-hospital mortality. The prevalence of ADHF was 14.5%. The mean age of our patients was 60.3 +/- 13.2 years. There was a male preponderance [71.8 Vs 28.2%]. There was a high percentage of co-morbidities among our patients. The average length of stay was 8.5 days. The in-hospital mortality was 4.9%. Beta-blocker use was relatively less than other studies. 88.5% patients had echocardiography done and 47.3% of them had preserved left ventricular ejection fraction [LVEF > 45%]. The clinical profile of this sample of ADHF reported from Kuwait is different from that observed in other clinical studies. These findings might have implications in the need for a nationwide database for future investigation and comparison

prevalence of atrial fibrillation among acute medical admissions in Kuwait

To establish the prevalence of atrial fibrillation [AF] among acute medical admissions to the Adan Hospital, Kuwait, and to evaluate the clinical features of the patients. Subjects and Of 2,833 acute medical admissions to the Adan Hospital from January 1 to May 31, 2003, 120 patients with AF were included in the study. The patients were divided into paroxysmal or persistent [PPAF], and chronic atrial fibrillation [CAF]. The prevalence of stroke and clinical features of the CAF patients with and without strokes were studied. All the patients with AF underwent echocardiography to evaluate left ventricular ejection fraction [LVEF] and left atrial dimension [LAD]. The prevalence of AF in the study period was 4.24%, of which 68.3% had CAF and 31.7% had PPAF. The prevalence of heart failure, ischemic heart disease, systemic hypertension, and diabetes mellitus was 27.5, 55.8, 65.8, and 53.3%, respectively. Patients with CAF were older and had a higher prevalence of heart failure compared to PPAF patients. Of the patients with CAF, 26.8% had at least one episode of stroke. The CAF patients had lower LVEF and larger LAD than PPAF patients. Stroke patients with CAF had lower LVEF and larger LAD as compared to those without stroke. Atrial fibrillation is a common admission diagnosis in our hospital. Patients with AF commonly suffer from heart failure, hypertension, diabetes mellitus, and ischemic heart disease. There was a high prevalence of stroke among CAF patients