UNLABELLED: Unplanned admissions for heart failure are common and some are considered preventable. OBJECTIVE: Undertake a systematic literature review and meta-analysis to evaluate the effectiveness of specialist clinics in reducing unplanned hospital admissions in people with heart failure. DATA SOURCES: 18 databases were searched from inception to June 2010. Relevant websites and reference lists of included studies were checked for additional publications. STUDY SELECTION: Randomised controlled trials in Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development countries that evaluated the effectiveness of specialist clinic interventions for heart failure compared with usual care, where unplanned heart failure admissions or readmissions were an outcome. DATA EXTRACTION: Data were extracted by one reviewer and checked by a second reviewer. RESULTS: 10 of 17 randomised controlled trials met the inclusion criteria. Specialist clinics showed a reduction in unplanned admissions at 12 months (pooled risk ratio (RR) for five studies 0.51 (95% CI 0.33 to 0.76); absolute risk reduction 16 per 100 (95% CI 12 to 20)). Studies with initial frequent (weekly/fortnightly) appointments reducing in frequency over the study duration demonstrated a 58% RR reduction in unplanned admissions (pooled RR for three studies 0.42 (95% CI 0.27 to 0.65); absolute risk reduction 14 per 100 (95% CI 7 to 20)). Clinics conducted on a monthly or 3 monthly basis throughout or tailored to the individual patients did not show an effect. CONCLUSIONS: Specialist clinics for patients with heart failure can reduce the risk of unplanned admissions; these were most effective when there was a high intensity of clinic appointments close to the time of discharge which then reduced over the follow-up period.
UNLABELLED: Unplanned admissions for heart failure are common and some are considered preventable. OBJECTIVE: Undertake a systematic literature review and meta-analysis to evaluate the effectiveness of specialist clinics in reducing unplanned hospital admissions in people with heart failure. DATA SOURCES: 18 databases were searched from inception to June 2010. Relevant websites and reference lists of included studies were checked for additional publications. STUDY SELECTION: Randomised controlled trials in Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development countries that evaluated the effectiveness of specialist clinic interventions for heart failure compared with usual care, where unplanned heart failure admissions or readmissions were an outcome. DATA EXTRACTION: Data were extracted by one reviewer and checked by a second reviewer. RESULTS: 10 of 17 randomised controlled trials met the inclusion criteria. Specialist clinics showed a reduction in unplanned admissions at 12 months (pooled risk ratio (RR) for five studies 0.51 (95% CI 0.33 to 0.76); absolute risk reduction 16 per 100 (95% CI 12 to 20)). Studies with initial frequent (weekly/fortnightly) appointments reducing in frequency over the study duration demonstrated a 58% RR reduction in unplanned admissions (pooled RR for three studies 0.42 (95% CI 0.27 to 0.65); absolute risk reduction 14 per 100 (95% CI 7 to 20)). Clinics conducted on a monthly or 3 monthly basis throughout or tailored to the individual patients did not show an effect. CONCLUSIONS: Specialist clinics for patients with heart failure can reduce the risk of unplanned admissions; these were most effective when there was a high intensity of clinic appointments close to the time of discharge which then reduced over the follow-up period.
Authors: Rosemary Simmonds; Margaret Glogowska; Sarah McLachlan; Helen Cramer; Tom Sanders; Rachel Johnson; Umesh Kadam; Daniel Lasserson; Sarah Purdy Journal: BMJ Open Date: 2015-10-19 Impact factor: 2.692
Authors: Boris Punchik; Roman Komarov; Dmitry Gavrikov; Anna Semenov; Tamar Freud; Ella Kagan; Yury Goldberg; Yan Press Journal: PLoS One Date: 2017-07-28 Impact factor: 3.240
Authors: Rachel Brettell; Michael Soljak; Elizabeth Cecil; Martin R Cowie; Philippe Tuppin; Azeem Majeed Journal: Eur J Heart Fail Date: 2013-07-11 Impact factor: 15.534
Authors: Niklas Bobrovitz; Carl Heneghan; Igho Onakpoya; Benjamin Fletcher; Dylan Collins; Alice Tompson; Joseph Lee; David Nunan; Rebecca Fisher; Brittney Scott; Jack O'Sullivan; Oliver Van Hecke; Brian D Nicholson; Sarah Stevens; Nia Roberts; Kamal R Mahtani Journal: BMC Med Date: 2018-07-26 Impact factor: 8.775