Impact of Changes in Rectus Femoris Cross-Sectional Area Measured by Ultrasound on the Prognosis of Patients With Acute Heart Failure.

BACKGROUND: Low muscle mass in patients with acute heart failure (AHF) is associated with poor prognosis; however, this is based on a single baseline measurement, with little information on changes in muscle mass during hospitalization and their clinical implications. This study investigated the relationship between changes in rectus femoris cross-sectional area (RFCSA) on ultrasound and the prognosis of patients with AHF.Methods and Results: This is a retrospective evaluation of 284 AHF patients (mean [±SD] age 79.1±11.9 years; 116 female). RFCSA assessments at admission (pre-RFCSA), ∆RFCSA (i.e., the percentage change in RFCSA from admission to 2 weeks), and composite prognosis (all-cause death and heart failure-related readmission) within 1 year were determined. Patients were divided into 4 groups according to their median pre-RFCSA and ∆RFCSA after sex stratification: Group A, higher pre-RFCSA/better ∆RFCSA; Group B, higher pre-RFCSA/worse ∆RFCSA; Group C, lower pre-RFCSA/better ∆RFCSA; Group D, lower pre-RFCSA/worse ∆RFCSA. In the Cox regression analysis, with Group A as the reference, the cumulative event rate of Group C (hazard ratio [HR] 3.39; 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.71-16.09; P=0.124) did not differ significantly; however, the cumulative event rates of Group B (HR 7.93; 95% CI 1.99-31.60; P=0.003) and Group D (HR 9.24; 95% CI 2.57-33.26; P<0.001) were significantly higher. CONCLUSIONS: ∆RFCSA during hospitalization is useful for risk assessment of prognosis in patients with AHF.

Impact of sarcopenia and malnutrition on swallowing function utilizing ultrasonography in patients with acute heart failure: A retrospective cohort study.

BACKGROUND & AIMS: This study aimed to determine the impact of sarcopenia and nutritional risk on swallowing-related muscles by ultrasonography and dysphagia occurrence in older patients with acute heart failure (AHF) during hospitalization. METHODS: Patients with AHF aged ≥65 years without dysphagia (Food Intake LEVEL Scale [FILS] score ≥9) before admission were classified into four groups at admission: robust group, sarcopenia group (Asian Working Group for Sarcopenia 2019), nutritional risk group (geriatric nutritional risk index <92), and complicated group (with both sarcopenia and nutritional risk). Swallowing function (maximal hyoid displacement, geniohyoid muscle area and brightness, and maximal tongue pressure) and FILS were investigated from the medical records. RESULTS: In total, 131 patients with AHF (mean age 82.8 ± 7.1 years, 71 males) were enrolled during the study period; 33, 58, 5, and 35 were classified into the robust, sarcopenia, nutritional risk, and complicated groups, respectively. In the covariance analysis adjusted for age, sex, comorbidities, and cardiac function, the complicated group had significantly worse swallowing function than the sarcopenia and robust groups (P < 0.05). In the Cox proportional hazards model, in which event occurrence was defined as the first-time FILS score of ≥9 obtained during hospitalization, the sarcopenia group (hazard ratio [HR]: 0.83, 95 % confidence interval [CI]: 0.51-1.34, P = 0.438) and nutritional risk group (HR: 0.77, 95 % CI:0.25-2.32, P = 0.637) were not significantly different, but the complicated group (HR: 0.54, 95 % CI: 0.31-0.95, P = 0.033) had significantly lower cumulative event rates with the robust group as the reference. CONCLUSION: Sarcopenia and nutritional risk in older patients with AHF are risk factors for decreased swallowing function.

Effect of Electrical Muscle Stimulation on the Reduction of Muscle Volume Loss in Acute Heart Failure Patients.

Electrical muscle stimulation (EMS) is expected to be considered as an add-on therapy for the usual rehabilitation of patients with chronic heart failure (HF). However, it remains unclear whether EMS can reduce muscle volume loss in patients with acute HF (AHF) immediately after hospitalization. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate if EMS could reduce the lower-limb muscle volume loss in patients with AHF. In this single-center, retrospective, observational study, lower-limb skeletal muscle volume, quadriceps muscle layer thickness, and clinical events (worsening HF or kidney function) were evaluated in 45 patients with AHF (mean age, 77.4 ± 11.6 years, 31 males). All patients underwent EMS on the right leg, in addition to usual rehabilitation, for 20 minutes per day, 5 days per week, for 2 weeks. A two-factor (time × leg) analysis of variance was performed to compare the difference between the right leg (usual rehabilitation and EMS) and left leg (usual rehabilitation only). The skeletal muscle mass decreased by 11.6% ± 19.7% from baseline in the right leg and by 20.4% ± 16.1% in the left leg (interaction; F = 4.54, P = 0.036). The quadriceps muscle layer thickness decreased by 10.2% ± 7.1% from baseline in the right leg and by 13.5% ± 6.0% in the left leg (interaction; F = 10.50, P = 0.002). No clinical events were related to EMS. Results showed that EMS combined with usual rehabilitation for patients with AHF has the potential to inhibit muscle volume loss.