Prognostic value of right ventricular strain and peak oxygen consumption in heart failure with reduced ejection fraction.

Our purpose is to evaluate the combined predictive value of cardiopulmonary exercise testing (CPET) and echocardiographic evidence of left ventricular (LV) and right ventricular (RV) strain in predicting mortality and heart transplant (HTx) in a series of outpatients with heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF). A retrospective cohort study of 66 patients with HFrEF (median age, 57 years; 51% women) who underwent CPET and echocardiography (up to 90 days apart) to assess prognosis. The primary outcome was a composite of death and need for HTx. At a median follow-up of 27 [20-39] months, 19 patients (29%) experienced the primary outcome. In unadjusted analysis, most echocardiographic and CPET parameters were associated with the primary outcome, including percentage of predicted peak oxygen consumption (ppVO2), VE/VCO2 slope, LV ejection fraction, and LV and RV longitudinal strain. After adjusting for other clinical, echocardiographic and CPET variables, RV free wall longitudinal strain and ppVO2 remained significantly associated with the primary outcome. Kaplan-Meier survival curves for death and HTx, based on the best cutoff values, showed lower survival rates in patients with impairment in both ppVO2 and RV FW-LS than in those with one or neither parameter impaired (p < 0.001). RV dysfunction and low cardiorespiratory fitness were independent markers of death and need for HTx. Impairment of both ppVO2 and RV FW-LS had a strong additive impact on prognostic assessment in this cohort of patients with HFrEF.

Avaliação da inserção do estudante na Unidade Básica de Saúde: visão do usuário / Evaluation of participation by students in primary healthcare units: the user's view

Este trabalho avaliou, na perspectiva dos usuários, a inserção do estudante de graduação na atenção básica. Para tanto, foi realizado um estudo exploratório-descritivo quali-quantitativo em uma Unidade Básica de Saúde (UBS) de Fortaleza, Ceará, entre 2009 e 2010. Entrevistaram-se usuários da unidade mediante instrumento estruturado com questões objetivas e discursivas. As respostas às questões discursivas foram investigadas seguindo a técnica de análise de conteúdo e tabuladas quanto à sua frequência nos discursos. Setenta e oito usuários foram abordados, dos quais 51 (65,4%) tinham conhecimento da presença de estudantes na UBS (em atendimento, atividades de educação ou visitas domiciliares) e, por isso, foram entrevistados. Desses 51, 96,1% considera importante a UBS funcionar como campo de estágio; 98,0% referiu que a atuação do acadêmico contribui para a melhoria da atenção à saúde; e 98,0% avaliou o estágio como uma atividade importante para a formação profissional dos alunos; 49,0% dos entrevistados já haviam sido atendidos ou acompanhados por acadêmicos, dentre os quais 96,0% declarou que se sentia confortável com a presença e o serviço dos estudantes. Constatou-se que, na perspectiva dos usuários, a contribuição da inserção dos acadêmicos na UBS é positiva.

This study adopted the perspective of services users to evaluate participation by undergraduate students in primary care. A qualitative and quantitative exploratory and descriptive study was conducted in a primary care unit in Fortaleza, Ceará State, in 2009 and 2010. Users of the primary care unit were interviewed with a structured questionnaire containing closed and open-ended questions. Answers to the discursive questions were investigated with the content analysis technique and tabulated according to their frequency. Seventy-eight users were approached, of whom 51 (65.4%) were aware of the presence of students in the primary care unit (in patient care, educational activities, or home visits), and these 51 were thus interviewed. Of these, 96.1% felt it was important for the primary care unit to act as a training facility; 98.0% reported that students' participation contributed to the improvement of healthcare; 98.0% considered this an important activity for the students' professional training; 49.0% of the interviewees had been treated or accompanied by students, among whom 96.0% stated that they felt comfortable with the students' presence and work. From the users' perspective, students' participation made a positive contribution to the primary care unit.