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Item
#14
Report
Shows That Thousands of Heart Failure Patients Are Not Receiving
Ideal Therapy
Despite
strong evidence that demonstrates the benefits of adding
beta-blockers to standard therapy, thousands of heart failure
patients are not receiving this class of drugs as part of their
treatment regimens, according to a nationwide survey of 400
cardiologists, internists, and general practitioners, known as the
Heart Failure Report Card.
The
survey, conducted in conjunction with the Cardiovascular Institute
of University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC) Health System,
showed that 87 percent of physicians polled say they clearly
understand the benefits of beta-blockers as seen in clinical
trials; however, this understanding isn't translating into
practice -- physicians report that they prescribe beta-blockers to
only one-third of their heart failure patients.
"We
developed the Heart Failure Report Card to help us understand the
current mindset and treatment patterns of physicians," said
Arthur Feldman, M.D., Ph.D., Director of the Cardiovascular
Institute of UPMC Health System in Pennsylvania. Physicians
surveyed were asked to give letter-grade scores to various
questions such as patient understanding of the disease, compliance
with the necessary lifestyle changes, physician satisfaction with
current medications and the availability of education about heart
failure treatment options.
Overall, physicians graded heart failure diagnosis and treatment
in the United States with a letter-grade of "C." Based
on the responses of the surveyed physicians, researchers concluded
that the key to optimizing heart failure treatment is education
about the use of emerging therapies in clinical practice.
"Beta-blockers are valuable tools for managing heart
failure," continued Dr. Feldman. "When used in
conjunction with other medications, they have been shown to
increase survival, potentially improve symptoms, enhance quality
of life and decrease hospitalizations. Unfortunately, the Report
Card findings show that most physicians are either not prescribing
them, or are waiting until symptoms have substantially worsened to
prescribe them. We need to educate both physicians and patients on
the most effective ways to incorporate them into treatment
regimens." Source: PRNewswire
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FACT:
People
with diabetes are 15 to 40 times more likely to requiure a
lower-limb amputation compared to the general population
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