Table 2.
Baseline clinical characteristics by PEF study groups on admission (n=188).
| n | PEF score 0 (n=63) | PEF score 1–4 (n=57) | PEF score 5–8 (n=68) | P (trend)* | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Demographics | |||||
| Age | 188 | 66 (53–78) | 72 (62–81) | 78 (70–84) | <0.001 |
| Male | 188 | 43 (68%) | 30 (53%) | 44 (65%) | 0.70 |
| Race | |||||
| White | 188 | 45 (72%) | 44 (77%) | 57 (84%) | 0.09 |
| Black | 188 | 14 (22%) | 12 (21%) | 6 (9%) | 0.04 |
| Admission exam | |||||
| BMI (kg/m2) | 188 | 33 (27–39) | 28 (24–32) | 24 (23–27) | <0.001 |
| Heart rate (bpm) | 188 | 77 (66–88) | 83 (71–97) | 79 (64–90) | 0.70 |
| Respiratory rate (breaths per min) | 188 | 19 (18–20) | 18 (18–20) | 18 (18–20) | 0.32 |
| Systolic blood pressure (mmHg) | 188 | 120 (106–136) | 120 (106–140) | 120 (103–137) | 0.71 |
| Diastolic blood pressure (mmHg) | 188 | 64 (60–76) | 69 (60–74) | 63 (58–71) | 0.18 |
| SpO2 (%) | 187 | 97 (95–98) | 97 (95–99) | 96 (95–98) | 0.10 |
| O2 supplementation | 187 | 14 (23%) | 18 (32%) | 32 (47%) | 0.003 |
| HF history | |||||
| NYHA class III or IV (n,%) | 188 | 45 (71%) | 42 (74%) | 49 (72%) | 0.94 |
| Prior HF diagnosis | 188 | 54 (86%) | 41 (72%) | 47 (69%) | 0.029 |
| HF admission within the past 6 months | 99 | 22 (51%) | 16 (70%) | 21 (64%) | 0.25 |
| HFrEF (EF <40%) | 188 | 35 (56%) | 28 (49%) | 32 (47%) | 0.34 |
| Medical history | |||||
| Hypertension | 188 | 50 (79%) | 49 (86%) | 57 (83%) | 0.58 |
| Atrial fibrillation | 188 | 33 (52%) | 31 (54%) | 37 (54%) | 0.81 |
| Myocardial infarction | 188 | 18 (29%) | 15 (26%) | 27 (40%) | 0.17 |
| CABG | 188 | 11 (17%) | 16 (28%) | 20 (29%) | 0.12 |
| ICD | 188 | 18 (29%) | 12 (21%) | 12 (18%) | 0.14 |
| Diabetes mellitus | 188 | 32 (51%) | 22 (37%) | 23 (34%) | 0.05 |
| COPD | 188 | 11 (17%) | 11 (19%) | 9 (13%) | 0.51 |
| OSA | 188 | 16 (25%) | 11 (19%) | 4 (6%) | 0.003 |
| Cancer | 188 | 17 (27%) | 16 (28%) | 22 (32%) | 0.50 |
| Home medication | |||||
| Beta-blocker | 188 | 54 (86%) | 45 (79%) | 55 (81%) | 0.48 |
| ACE inhibitor/ARB/ARNI | 188 | 33 (52%) | 26 (46%) | 28 (41%) | 0.20 |
| Diuretics | 188 | 50 (79%) | 34 (60%) | 42 (62%) | 0.035 |
| Spironolactone | 188 | 18 (29%) | 11 (19%) | 4 (6%) | 0.001 |
| Insulin | 188 | 18 (29%) | 13 (23%) | 13 (19%) | 0.20 |
| Admission laboratory results | |||||
| Sodium (mmol/l) | 188 | 140 (136–141) | 138 (135–140) | 139 (136–141) | 0.50 |
| Potassium (mmol/l) | 188 | 4.2 (3.9–4.8) | 4.3 (4–4.5) | 4.3 (4–4.6) | 0.82 |
| Haemoglobin (g/dl) | 188 | 11.5 (10.1–13.4) | 11.5 (10.2–12.8) | 11 (9.3–12.8) | 0.19 |
| Haematocrit (%) | 187 | 35 (31–40) | 36 (31–39) | 34 (29–38) | 0.20 |
| eGFR (ml/min/l.73m2) | 188 | 41 (24–61) | 46 (34–61) | 42 (21–65) | 0.79 |
| Hospitalisation data | |||||
| Hospital length of stay (days) | 188 | 7 (3–10) | 6 (4–9) | 6 (3–13) | 0.89 |
Data are presented as median (IQR) for continuous and as count (%) for categorical data.
P (trend) for PEF study groups 1–3.
PEF: pleural effusion; BMI: body mass index; SpO2: peripheral capillary oxygen saturation; O2: oxygen; NYHA: New York Heart Association; HF: heart failure; HFrEF: heart failure with reduced ejection fraction; CAD: coronary artery disease; CABG: coronary arterial bypass grafting; ICD: internal cardioverter-defibrillator; COPD: chronic obstructive pulmonary disease; OSA: obstructive sleep apnoea; ACE: angiotensin-converting enzyme; ARB: angiotensin receptor blocker; ARNI: angiotensin receptor neprilysin inhibitor, eGFR: estimated glomerular filtration rate.