Haemoglobin predicts survival in patients with chronic heart failure: a substudy of the ELITE II trial

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Abstract
The correction of anaemia in chronic heart failure (CHF) has been suggested to be associated with an improvement in symptoms and cardiac function. We aimed to investigate the relationship between the concentration of haemoglobin and survival in CHF. We analysed haemoglobin concentrations in 3044 patients recruited in the Evaluation of Losartan In The Elderly (ELITE II) trial. Patients of mean age 71.5 +/- 6.8 years (+/-SD) and New York Heart Association (NYHA) class 2.5 +/- 0.6 were enrolled from June 1997 to May 1998 and followed-up for survival (range 1-780 days, median 551). In univariate analysis, age, NYHA class, serum creatinine, left ventricular ejection fraction (all P0.3). Haemoglobin is an independent predictor of mortality in CHF patients, with anaemic and polycythaemic patients having the worst survival.