Effect of elevated admission serum creatinine and its worsening on outcome in hospitalized patients with decompensated heart failure.

Renal insufficiency (RI), as represented by elevated serum creatinine (>1.5 mg/dl) on admission, is common and found in almost half of patients hospitalized with decompensated heart failure. This finding is associated with prolongation of length of stay and rate of rehospitalizations after discharge and also has an independent unfavorable effect on 6-month mortality. Similarly, an increase in serum creatinine (>0.5 mg/dl) in the hospital results in a significantly longer length of stay and has an independent effect on long-term mortality.