Arq. Bras. Cardiol. 2025; 122(6): e20250329

What is the Impact of Advancements in the Treatment of Heart Failure Patients on Mortality?

Lídia Ramalho Ribeiro Garcia, Fernanda Vitória Araújo da Silva, João Marcos Bemfica Barbosa Ferreira

DOI: 10.36660/abc.20250329i

This Short Editorial is referred by the Research article "Survival Analysis and Factors Associated with Mortality in Heart Failure Patients in the ELSA-Brasil Cohort".

The article titled Survival Analysis and Factors Associated with Mortality in Heart Failure Patients in the ELSA-Brasil Cohort presents a significant case series on mortality in 251 patients diagnosed with heart failure in a Brazilian long-term outpatient follow-up cohort. The clinical profile associated with male individuals aged 70 and older, with left ventricular systolic dysfunction and the presence of comorbidities, showed poorer survival outcomes. Overall mortality after 12.3 years of follow-up was 19%. Among the classes of drugs known to reduce mortality in heart failure, patients in this study used beta-blockers, angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEIs), angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs), and/or mineralocorticoid receptor antagonists. It is also worth noting that a minority of patients (6%) had an ejection fraction lower than 45%. Patient inclusion in the study occurred between 2008 and 2010.

In the past ten years, according to DATASUS, Brazil has recorded over 2.2 million hospitalizations due to heart failure (HF), with an increasing trend, especially between 2015 and 2025. The Southeast region accounted for most of these cases (42.13%), followed by the Northeast (22.6%), South (22.5%), while the North and Central-West regions accounted for 5.6% and 7.5%, respectively. There is a slight male predominance (51.8%), and the highest incidence is observed in individuals over 60 years old, reflecting an aging population and the association of HF with conditions such as hypertension, diabetes, and coronary artery disease.^,

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