Autoimmunity and Diastolic Heart Failure
Author Information
Author(s): Luis Miguel Blasco Mata, Olga González-Fernández, Carmen Rosa Novo Robledo, Francisco Pérez-Llantada Amunárriz, Enrique Acha Salazar
Primary Institution: Unidad de Alta Resolución Hospitalaría (UARH), Hospital Marqués de Valdecilla, Santander, Spain
Hypothesis
Can systemic lupus erythematosus and systemic autoimmune connective tissue disorders explain recurrent unexplained diastolic heart failure in patients?
Conclusion
Systemic autoimmune conditions explained 11% of recurrent unexplained diastolic heart failure cases, and specific therapy may prevent readmissions.
Supporting Evidence
- 11% of recurrent unexplained diastolic heart failure cases were linked to systemic autoimmune conditions.
- Specific therapy was associated with prevention of new readmissions.
- Elderly patients should not be excluded from investigations of autoimmune conditions.
Takeaway
Some people with heart failure might actually have autoimmune diseases that make their heart not work right. Treating these diseases can help them feel better.
Methodology
A prospective observational study was conducted to identify SLE or SCTD in patients with recurrent unexplained diastolic heart failure.
Potential Biases
Potential bias in diagnosis due to reliance on nonvalidated internal consensus criteria.
Limitations
The study did not include controls for comparison and had a small sample size.
Participant Demographics
All participants were elderly women with a history of autoimmune symptoms.
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
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