Evaluation of the functional status questionnaire in heart failure: a sub-study of the second cardiac insufficiency bisoprolol survival study (CIBIS-II).

AIMS: We evaluated a generic quality of life (QoL) Functional Status Questionnaire (FSQ), in patients with chronic heart failure (CHF). The FSQ assesses the 3 main dimensions of QoL: physical functioning, mental health and social role. It also includes 6 single item questions about: work status, frequency of social interactions, satisfaction with sexual relationships, days in bed, days with restricted activity and overall satisfaction with health status. The FSQ was compared to the Minnesota Living with Heart Failure questionnaire (MLwHF). METHODS AND RESULTS: The FSQ was evaluated in a substudy (n = 340) of the second Cardiac Insufficiency Bisoprolol Survival study (CIBIS-II), a placebo-controlled mortality trial. 265 patients (75%) patients completed both questionnaires at 6 months of follow-up. Both questionnaires indicated substantially impaired QoL. The FSQ demonstrated high internal consistency (Cronbach's α > 0.7 for all items except "social activity" = 0.66) and construct and concurrent validity. After 6 months, the only item on either questionnaire to show a difference between the placebo- and bisoprolol-treatment groups was the single item FSQ question about "days in bed" (p = 0.018 in favour of bisoprolol). CONCLUSIONS: The FSQ performed well in this study, provided additional information to the MLwHF questionnaire and allowed interesting comparisons with other chronic medical conditions. The FSQ may be a useful general QoL instrument for studies in CHF.

Improved survival with bisoprolol in patients with heart failure and renal impairment: an analysis of the cardiac insufficiency bisoprolol study II (CIBIS-II) trial.

AIMS: Information on the effectiveness of beta-blockade in patients with heart failure (HF) and concomitant renal impairment is scarce and beta-blockers are underutilized in these patients. METHODS AND RESULTS: The Cockcroft-Gault formula normalized for body surface-area was used to estimate renal function (eGFR(BSA)) in 2622 patients with HF, left ventricular ejection fraction < or =35%, New York Heart Association class III/IV and serum creatinine <300 micromol/L (3.4 mg/dL) in the second Cardiac Insufficiency Bisoprolol Study II. Patients were divided into four sub-groups according to baseline eGFR(BSA) (<45, 45-60, 60-75 and > or =75 mL/min per 1.73 m(2)). Cox proportional-hazards models adjusted for pre-specified confounders were used to assess the effect of bisoprolol and potential heterogeneity of effect across the eGFR(BSA) sub-groups. Older age, female-sex, diabetes and ischaemic-aetiology were more common in those with reduced eGFR(BSA). The hazard associated with bisoprolol use for all-cause mortality, the composite of all-cause mortality or HF-hospitalization and HF-hospitalization alone was consistently <1.0 across eGFR(BSA) categories with no treatment by renal-function interaction (P = 0.81, P = 0.66, P = 0.71, respectively). The rate of bisoprolol discontinuation was higher in patients with eGFR(BSA) < 45 mL/min per 1.73 m(2). Nevertheless the absolute benefit of bisoprolol was greater for patients with chronic kidney disease compared with those without. CONCLUSION: The beneficial effects of bisoprolol on mortality and hospitalization for worsening heart-failure were not modified by baseline eGFR(BSA). Renal impairment should not prevent the use of bisoprolol in patients with HF.