Quality of care and outcomes in acute decompensated heart failure: The ADHERE Registry.

Abstract

Despite 1 million or more annual hospitalizations, the management of acute decompensated heart failure remains largely empiric. Data are lacking regarding patient characteristics, usual comorbidities, commonly used treatment strategies, clinical outcomes, and adherence to recently published quality indicators. The Acute Decompensated Heart Failure National Registry (ADHERE(R)) has been established to capture data regarding the presentation, management, and expected outcomes of acute decompensated heart failure. The size of the registry and its web-based platform allow for evaluation of compliance with quality indicators, assessment of mortality risk, and correlation of parenteral treatment strategies with clinical outcomes. More than 100,000 patient episodes have been recorded in the registry. These patient data have been reviewed and reveal important findings regarding acute decompensated heart failure and potential opportunities to improve the quality of care.