Table 1.
Baseline characteristics of the overall population and according to the achieving of complete titration
| Variable | Overall | Incomplete titration | Complete titration | P‐value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Patients, no. | 106 | 44 | 62 | |
| Age, years (SD) | 73.7 (10.4) | 76.4 (9.4) | 71.6 (10.7) | 0.025 |
| Male sex, no. (%) | 87 (82.1) | 36 (81.8) | 51 (82.3) | 0.95 |
| CV risk factors | ||||
| Hypertension, no. (%) | 89 (84.0) | 36 (81.8) | 53 (85.5) | 0.61 |
| Diabetes, no. (%) | 38 (35.8) | 15 (34.1) | 23 (37.1) | 0.75 |
| Physical features (SD) | ||||
| Systolic BP, mmHg (SD) | 125.4 (14.7) | 124 (14.9) | 126.4 (14.5) | 0.42 |
| Diastolic BP, mmHg (SD) | 74.7 (9.3) | 73.2 (8.6) | 75.7 (9.7) | 0.16 |
| Pulse pressure, mmHg (SD) | 50.7 (10.6) | 50.8 (9.6) | 50.6 (11.4) | 0.91 |
| Heart rate, b.p.m. (SD) | 67.9 (11.7) | 68.8 (13.6) | 67.2 (10.3) | 0.51 |
| BMI, kg/m2 (SD) | 27.5 (4.6) | 27.0 (4.3) | 27.8 (4.9) | 0.44 |
| Aetiology of HF | 0.52 | |||
| Ischaemic aetiology, no. (%) | 76 (71.7) | 33 (75.0) | 43 (69.4) | |
| Non‐ischaemic aetiology, no. (%) | 30 (28.3) | 11 (25.0) | 19 (30.6) | |
| Comorbidities | ||||
| Chronic renal failure (eGFR < 60 mL/min/1.72 m2), no. (%) | 66 (62.3) | 33 (75.0) | 33 (53.2) | 0.023 |
| Baseline laboratory analysis | ||||
| Serum sodium, mg/mL (SD) | 140.5 (3.4) | 139.7 (4.1) | 141.0 (2.6) | 0.075 |
| Serum potassium, mg/mL (SD) | 4.4 (0.6) | 4.5 (0.5) | 4.4 (0.6) | 0.24 |
| eGFR, mL/min/1.72 m2 a (SD) | 54.0 (20.3) | 49.0 (21.7) | 57.6 (18.5) | 0.032 |
| Haemoglobin, g/dL (SD) | 13.2 (1.6) | 12.5 (1.4) | 13.6 (1.6) | <0.001 |
| Median BNP values, pg/mL (IQR) | 412 (190–806) | 603 (191–1019) | 371 (156–553) | 0.11 |
| NYHA class, no. (%) | 0.18 | |||
| I | 5 (4.7) | 2 (4.5) | 3 (4.8) | |
| II | 68 (64.2) | 24 (54.5) | 44 (71.0) | |
| III | 33 (31.1) | 18 (40.9) | 15 (24.0) | |
| Heart rhythm at baseline ECG, no. (%) | 0.13 | |||
| Sinus rhythm | 50 (47.2) | 19 (43.2) | 31 (50.0) | |
| Atrial fibrillation/flutter | 28 (26.4) | 9 (20.5) | 19 (30.6) | |
| Paced rhythm | 28 (26.4) | 16 (36.4) | 11 (18.4) | |
| Echocardiogram | ||||
| LVEDVi, mL/m2 (SD) | 111.0 (42.5) | 103.9 (36.1) | 114.9 (45.6) | 0.25 |
| Ejection fraction, no. (%) | 29.4 (5.9) | 28.0 (6.5) | 30.4 (5.3) | 0.044 |
| SV, mL (SD) | 60.0 (17.0) | 55.6 (14.5) | 63.3 (18.3) | 0.02 |
| SVi, mL/m2 (SD) | 31.0 (7.9) | 28.7 (7.0) | 32.6 (8.1) | 0.011 |
| Cardiac index, L/min/m2 (SD) | 2.1 (0.7) | 2.0 (0.6) | 2.2 (0.7) | 0.12 |
| Flow rate, mL/min (SD) | 215.4 (58.9) | 203.8 (49.7) | 223.6 (63.8) | 0.10 |
| PAPs, mmHg (SD) | 43.7 (10.1) | 45.3 (9.6) | 42.4 (10.4) | 0.34 |
| Diastolic dysfunction b , no. (%) | 0.12 | |||
| Grade I | 24 (22.6) | 8 (18.2) | 16 (25.8) | |
| Grade II | 22 (20.8) | 14 (31.8) | 8 (12.9) | |
| Grade III | 30 (28.3) | 14 (31.8) | 16 (25.8) | |
| Undetermined | 30 (28.3) | 8 (18.2) | 22 (35.5) | |
| Heart failure treatments | ||||
| Beta‐blocker, no. (%) | 96 (90.1) | 40 (91.0) | 56 (90.3) | 0.92 |
| MRAs, no. (%) | 89 (84.0) | 38 (86.4) | 51 (82.3) | 0.57 |
| Loop diuretics, no. (%) | 97 (91.5) | 42 (95.5) | 55 (88.7) | 0.22 |
| Median loop diuretics dose, mg/day c (IQR) | 50 (25–75) | 50 (25–100) | 50 (25–75) | 0.055 |
| Loop diuretics preventive reduction, no. (%) | 32 (30.2) | 11 (25.0) | 21 (33.9) | 0.33 |
| ICD/CRT‐D, no. (%) | 38 (35.8) | 19 (43.2) | 19 (30.6) | 0.18 |
| CRT‐P/CRT‐D, no. (%) | 17 (16.0) | 8 (18.2) | 9 (14.5) | 0.61 |
BMI, body mass index; BP, blood pressure; CRT‐D, cardiac resynchronization therapy‐defibrillator; CRT‐P, cardiac resynchronization therapy‐pacemaker; CV, cardiovascular; ECG, electrocardiogram; eGFR, estimated glomerular filtration rate; HF, heart failure; ICD, implantable cardioverter defibrillator; LVEDVi, left ventricular end‐diastolic volume index; MRAs, mineralocorticoid receptor antagonists; NYHA, New York Heart Association; PAPs, pulmonary artery pressures; SBP, systolic blood pressure; SV, stroke volume; SVi, stroke volume index.
Values are reported as mean and standard deviation (SD), number and percentage, or median and interquartile range (IQR). P‐values < 0.05 are reported in bold.
The Modification of Diet in Renal Disease formula has been used.
Loop diuretic doses are reported as furosemide equivalents.
Patients with undermined status were excluded from this analysis.