Risk Factors and Outcomes of Heart Failure Following First-Episode of Acute Myocardial Infarction—A Case Series Study of 161,384 Cases

Background: Heart failure (HF) is one of the important complications of acute myocardial infarction (AMI), but the epidemiology, associated risks and outcomes have not been well investigated in the era of broad use of fluoroscopy-guided angiographic intervention. Methods: We analysed 161,384 subjects who had experienced the first episode of AMI during 1 January 2000 and 31 December 2012 using the Taiwan National Health Insurance Research Database. Results: During the index AMI hospitalization, 23.6% of cases developed HF. Female, ≥65 years-old, non-ST-segment elevation type of MI, diabetes mellitus (DM), peripheral vascular occlusion disease (PAOD), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), atrial fibrillation, and ventricular tachycardia/fibrillation (VT/VF) were associated with higher risks of developing HF. HF cases had inferior survival outcomes compared to non-HF cases in both the short and long term. Among those HF patients, ≥65 years, DM, PAOD, and VT/VF were associated with worse outcomes. On the contrary, coronary reperfusion intervention and treat-to-target pharmacologic treatment were associated with favourable survival outcomes. Conclusions: HF remains common in the modern age and poses negative impacts in survival of AMI patients. It highlights that prudent prevention and early treatment of HF during AMI hospitalization is an important medical issue.