OBJECTIVES:

To identify the clinical and socio-epidemiological characteristics of patients with heart failure (HF) in emergency care at a highly complex hospital in the Amazon Region of Brazil, as well as the comorbidities associated with the mortality of patients with decompensated HF.

MATERIALS AND METHODS:

Longitudinal and prospective study, carried out in a public hospital of reference for cardiological emergency in the Northern Region of Brazil. This study included 125 patients with decompensated HF.

RESULTS:

The main etiology of HF was systemic arterial hypertension (39.2%), followed by idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathy (25.6%), with the least common etiology being myocarditis (0.8%). The most common cause of decompensation was patients' poor adherence to drug therapy (41.6%), followed by infections (21.6%). The main symptoms presented by the patients were dyspnea (96.0%) and bilateral ankle edema (72.0%). As for mortality, there was no statistical significance between the hemodynamic profile at admission and the mortality of patients with decompensated HF (p = 0.4555).

CONCLUSION:

Regarding clinical characteristics, the main hemodynamic profile found was cold and congestion, considered the worst prognosis. Poor adherence to drug therapy and infections were the main causes of decompensation, although no statistically significant correlation was found with mortality. Thus, patients should be instructed on the correct adherence to drug treatment and how to identify congestive HF symptoms, so that they can seek help in time and thereby improve their quality of life.

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