The impact of COVID 19 on heart failure hospitalization and management from an Asian perspective

Abstract Introduction COVID 19 is a global pandemic that has stretched healthcare resources. We explored the shift in patient demographics and clinical management of systolic heart failure (HF) patients during the COVID 19 outbreak. Purpose To examine the impact of COVID 19 on the hospitalization rates of decompensated systolic HF patients in a tertiary hospital in Asia and delineate differences in the clinical characteristics and management of these patients. Methods Data was extracted from the admission registry for systolic HF patients admitted to the tertiary hospital from January to June 2019 (pre-COVID) and the corresponding time period in 2020 during the COVID outbreak. We compared the demographics, clinical management and outcomes of these patients. Results There was a significant reduction in patients admitted for systolic HF during the COVID period, 174 (6.3%) compared to 240 (8.5%) pre-COVID (p=0.001). The baseline demographics were similar except for the age of patients admitted during the COVID 19 period, which were younger at 66.1±13.5 compared to 69.9±13.9 pre-COVID (p=0.007). The mean left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) was lower during the COVID period (22.9±10.1% vs 24.9±10.1%; p=0.032). More patients during the COVID period were placed on mineralocorticoid receptor antagonists (p=0.001) and SGLT2 inhibitors (p