In patients with chronic heart failure which polypharmacy pheno-groups are associated with adverse health outcomes? (Polypharmacy pheno-groups and heart failure outcomes)

Background: Patients with heart failure are living longer with the inevitable morbidity of rising medication counts. It remains uncertain what fraction of this ensuing polypharmacy exactly predicts adverse clinical outcomes. 

Methods: This prospective study examined records of patients admitted to a Weill Cornell-affiliated tertiary medical institution with a confirmed diagnosis of heart failure between January 2018 to January 2022. Each patient's medications for the past four months were tallied, and a definitional threshold of ≤4, ≥5, ≥10 medications was established. The primary outcome was all-cause mortality within the study period. Results: Out of a total of 7354 patients included in the study, 70 % were males with a median age of 59 years IQR (48–71). The median (IQR) age-adjusted Charlson Comorbidity Index (CCI) was 2^1–5. A total of 1475 (20 %) participants died within the study period. Patient cohorts with excessive polypharmacy (≥9 medications) had the highest probability of survival up to 1.6 years compared to those with lower medication thresholds (≤4); the mortality rate decreased by 18 % for patients with excessive polypharmacy [HR = 0.82, 95 % CI: 0.71–0.94]). Conversely, patients with non-heart failure-related polypharmacy had increased risks of ICU admissions (aOR = 1.78, 95 % CI: 1.13–2.70). 

Conclusion: In an examination of a database of patients with chronic heart failure, major non-heart failure-related polypharmacy was associated with increased risks in intensive care admissions. Excessive polypharmacy was associated with increased rates of survival.