Table 1.
Patient Characteristics of the Study Population in the Present Study
| Variable | Self-care management system | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| User (n=153) |
Non-user (n=153) |
P value | |
| Clinical characteristic | |||
| Age (years)* | 79 [68–85] | 77 [67–84] | 0.409 |
| Sex, male* | 83 (54) | 88 (58) | 0.645 |
| Multiple HF readmission (>3 times) | 10 (7) | 5 (3) | 0.290 |
| First HF admission | 116 (76) | 122 (80) | 0.492 |
| Living alone | 41 (27) | 49 (32) | 0.380 |
| Etiology | |||
| Ischemic heart disease | 48 (31) | 56 (37) | 0.398 |
| Valvular heart disease | 42 (27) | 50 (33) | 0.383 |
| Dilated cardiomyopathy | 11 (7) | 14 (9) | 0.677 |
| Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy | 7 (5) | 2 (1) | 0.173 |
| Other cardiomyopathies | 9 (6) | 9 (6) | 1.000 |
| Congenital heart disease | 0 (0) | 1 (0.7) | 1.000 |
| Other | 37 (24) | 28 (18) | 0.263 |
| Medical history | |||
| Atrial fibrillation or flutter | 82 (54) | 77 (50) | 0.647 |
| Cardiac resynchronization therapy | 4 (3) | 6 (4) | 0.750 |
| Implantable cardioverter defibrillator | 1 (0.7) | 1 (0.7) | 1.000 |
| Diabetes | 58 (38) | 45 (29) | 0.146 |
| Prior stroke | 25 (16) | 33 (22) | 0.307 |
| Chronic obstructive lung disease | 11 (7) | 18 (12) | 0.241 |
| Malignancy | 31 (20) | 22 (14) | 0.227 |
| Dementia | 10 (7) | 11 (7) | 1.000 |
| Tests at admission | |||
| LVEF (%) | 45.7±14.7 | 46.7±15.5 | 0.449 |
| LVEF <40%* | 54 (35) | 59 (3) | 0.636 |
| BNP (pg/mL) | 214 [104–478] | 204 [99–448] | 0.942 |
| BNP >235 pg/mL (median) | 71 (46) | 70 (46) | 1.000 |
| eGFR (mL/min/1.73 m2) | 44 [25–61] | 42 [29–60] | 0.759 |
| eGFR <30 mL/min/1.73 m2 | 41 (27) | 45 (29) | 0.702 |
| Serum sodium (mEq/L) | 140 [138–141] | 139 [137–142] | 0.403 |
| Serum potassium (mEq/L) | 4.3 [3.9–4.7] | 4.3 [4.0–4.6] | 0.782 |
| Serum albumin (g/dL) | 3.9 [3.6–4.2] | 3.9 [3.7–4.2] | 0.716 |
| Hemoglobin (g/dL) | 12 [11–13] | 12 [10–14] | 0.616 |
| Concomitant treatment | |||
| β-blockers | 110 (72) | 114 (75) | 0.699 |
| ACEI or ARBs | 111 (73) | 116 (76) | 0.602 |
| Aldosterone antagonists | 72 (47) | 79 (52) | 0.493 |
| Loop diuretics | 131 (86) | 127 (83) | 0.638 |
| Thiazides | 13 (9) | 19 (12) | 0.350 |
| Tolvaptan | 9 (6) | 9 (6) | 1.000 |
| Inotropic agents | 7 (5) | 8 (4) | 1.000 |
| Statins | 64 (42) | 57 (37) | 0.483 |
| Calcium antagonists | 49 (32) | 51 (33) | 0.903 |
Unless indicated otherwise, data are presented as mean±SD, median [IQR], or n (%). ACEI, angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor; ARB, angiotensin-receptor blocker; BNP, B-type natriuretic peptide; eGFR, estimated glomerular filtration rate; HF, heart failure; LVEF, left ventricular ejection fraction.