Temporal trends in admission for cardiac rehabilitation after an acute coronary syndrome in France from 2009 to 2021: Persistent sex, age and social disparities.

BACKGROUND: Cardiac rehabilitation after an acute coronary syndrome is recommended to decrease patient morbidity and mortality and to improve quality of life. AIMS: To describe time trends in the rates of patients undergoing cardiac rehabilitation after an acute coronary syndrome in France from 2009 to 2021, and to identify possible disparities. METHODS: All patients hospitalized for acute coronary syndrome in France between January 2009 and June 2021 were identified from the national health insurance database. Cardiac rehabilitation attendance was identified within 6 months of acute coronary syndrome hospital discharge. Age-standardized cardiac rehabilitation rates were computed and stratified for sex and acute coronary syndrome subtypes (ST-segment elevation and non-ST-segment elevation). Patient characteristics and outcomes were described and compared. Factors independently associated with cardiac rehabilitation attendance were identified. RESULTS: In 2019, among 134,846 patients with an acute coronary syndrome, 22.3% underwent cardiac rehabilitation within 6 months of acute coronary syndrome hospital discharge. The mean age of patients receiving cardiac rehabilitation was 62 years. The median delay between acute coronary syndrome hospitalization and cardiac rehabilitation was 32 days, with about 60% receiving outpatient cardiac rehabilitation. Factors significantly associated with higher cardiac rehabilitation rates were male sex, younger age (35-64 years), least socially disadvantaged group, ST-segment elevation, percutaneous coronary intervention and coronary artery bypass graft. Between 2009 and 2019, cardiac rehabilitation rates increased by 40% from 15.9% to 22.3%. Despite greater upward trends in women, their cardiac rehabilitation rate was significantly lower than that for men (14.8% vs. 25.8%). In 2020, cardiac rehabilitation attendance dropped because of the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic. CONCLUSIONS: Despite the health benefits of cardiac rehabilitation, current cardiac rehabilitation attendance after acute coronary syndrome remains insufficient in France, particularly among the elderly, women and socially disadvantaged people.

Treatment and adherence to antihypertensive therapy in France: the roles of socioeconomic factors and primary care medicine in the ESTEBAN survey.

Antihypertensive drugs remain one of the main beneficial strategies for cardiovascular disease prevention. The objective of our study was to investigate the associations of different clinical and socioeconomic (SES) factors, and the use of primary care medicine with treatment and adherence (proportion of days covered (PDC) by treatment) to hypertension management in French participants aware of their hypertension. Cross-sectional analyses of treatment for hypertension and adherence to treatment were performed using data from 396 participants from the ESTEBAN survey, a representative sample of the French population. Logistic regression analyses were performed to investigate associations between SES factors (age, sex, education, income, civil status), clinical factors, health care (general practitioner (GP) visits, cardiologist visits, number of consultations, home blood pressure measurement (HBPM)), treatment and adherence. A total of 265 of the 396 hypertensive patients were treated. Antihypertensive drug use was more common among elderly individuals (OR: 2.73 [1.14; 4.32), diabetic patients (OR: 4.18 [1.92; 6.44] and overweight hypertensive patients (OR = 3.04 [1.09; 4.99]). GP consultations and HBPM were associated with increased treatment (OR: 1.03 [1.01; 1.05]; OR: 1.97 [1.06; 2.61], respectively). The PDC was higher among men (p = 0.045) and couples living together (p = 0.018) but lower among diabetic patients (p = 0.012) and patients visiting a cardiologist (p = 0.008). Education and income levels were not associated with either treatment or the PDC. In France, SES factors seemed to have little impact on treatment and adherence to antihypertensive drug regimens. However, treatment administered by GPs and HBPM may play key roles in hypertension management. Although the PDC was quite low, both the number of GP consultations and HBPM were positively associated with pharmacological treatment.

Prevalence and management of hypercholesterolemia in France, the Esteban observational study.

Hypercholesterolemia is a major risk factor for cardiovascular diseases. However, its management in everyday clinical practice is often suboptimal. The aims of the Esteban study were to estimate the prevalence of hypercholesterolemia and to describe its management in France in 2015.Esteban is a cross-sectional, publicly funded survey, representative of the French population. Data were collected using questionnaires and biological and clinical examinations in 3021 adults aged 18-74.The lipid-lowering treatments were obtained by matching the individual data of the subjects included in the Esteban survey with data from the Système national de données de santé. Hypercholesterolemia was defined as either a low density lipoprotein cholesterol value higher than the goal set in the European Society of Cardiology/European Atherosclerosis Society guidelines as a function of individual cardiovascular risk level, or at least 1 delivery of lipid-lowering treatment. Adherence was defined by the proportion of days covered by the lipid-lowering treatment in the 6 months preceding clinical examination. Prevalence of hypercholesterolemia in France was 23.3% (27.8% in men, 19.0% in women). Mean low density lipoprotein cholesterol was 3.38 mmol/l in French participants. Among them, 7.2% were treated (8.5% of men, 5.8% of women), while 16.1% of adults went untreated (19.3% of men, 13.2% of women). Only 29.7% of secondary prevention adults had a delivery of lipid-lowering treatments in the 6 months preceding clinical examination. Fewer than 1 in 3 treated adults were adherent, i.e. more than 80% of days covered by a treatment. This proportion reached 37.4% in the high-risk group, with no significant difference of adherence in people with or without a personal history of cardiovascular disease in this group.This study showed that hypercholesterolemia is a common metabolic disease in France, affecting 23.3% of the population. Lipid-lowering prescriptions diverged greatly from current recommendations, with less than a third of eligible patients being treated.

Epidemiological Features of Aortic Stenosis in a French Nationwide Study: 10-Year Trends and New Challenges.

Background Aortic stenosis (AS) is one of the most common forms of valvular heart disease. Our aim was to estimate the burden of AS in the hospital in France, describe patient characteristics, and evaluate the mortality rate and temporal trends. Methods and Results All patients hospitalized for AS in France between 2006 and 2016 were identified from the national hospital discharge database. Patients' sociodemographic, medical, and surgical characteristics and temporal trends were described. All AS-related deaths between 2000 and 2014 were identified using death certificates. In 2016, 26 071 patients were hospitalized for AS: 56.5% were men with an average age of 77 years. The all-cause mortality rate at 1 year postindex stay was 11%. The rate of patients hospitalized for AS increased by 59% between 2006 and 2016, reaching 38.7/100 000 person-years in 2016. This increase was most pronounced in patients aged >75 years. The number of transcatheter aortic valve implantations increased following their introduction in 2010. In 2016, 44% of patients were treated with aortic valve surgery during the index hospital stay or following year (mean age, 71.5 years), and 34% were treated with transcatheter aortic valve implantation (mean age, 83.0 years). In 2014, 6186 deaths caused by AS were identified in death certificates: 41.6% were men with an average age of 87 years. The age-standardized mortality rate increased by 5% between 2000 and 2014, reaching 8.5/100 000 person-years in 2014. Conclusions The rate of patients hospitalized for AS increased in recent years in line with the higher life expectancy and introduction of transcatheter aortic valve implantation. Mortality increased more moderately.

Early and late case fatality after hospitalization for acute coronary syndrome in France, 2010-2015.

BACKGROUND: Case-fatality data for acute coronary syndromes (ACS) are scarce in unselected French patients. AIMS: To analyse early and late case-fatality rates in patients with ACS in France, case fatality determinants and time trends between 2010 and 2015. METHODS: For each year from 2010 to 2015, all patients hospitalized for ACS in France and aged>18 years were selected. Multivariable Cox models were used to assess determinants of case fatality at 3 days, 4-30 days and 31-365 days after hospital admission. RESULTS: In 2015, cumulative 3-day, 30-day and 1-year case-fatality rates were, respectively, 2.0%, 5.1% and 11.1% for all patients with ACS, and 3.9%, 8.5% and 13.8% for those with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI). Admission through the emergency department was associated with a higher risk of death, particularly at 3 days. Female sex was associated with higher case-fatality rates at 3 days, but with lower case-fatality rates at 31-365 days. Social deprivation was associated with higher case-fatality rates for all periods for all patients with ACS. A significant decrease was found between 2010 and 2015 in case-fatality rates at 31-365 days, particularly for patients with STEMI; this time trend was no longer significant after additional adjustment for hospital management. CONCLUSIONS: Case fatality up to 1 year after hospitalization for ACS was non-negligible, highlighting the need to ensure better follow-up after the acute stage, particularly in the most deprived patients. As hospital admission through the emergency department still occurs frequently, health policy should promote a national campaign to increase the awareness and preparedness of the general population regarding ACS. Finally, our results suggest that women need specific attention early after the index event.