Significant cognitive decline, increased depressive symptoms, and reduced self-care reported among those with heart failure
By Lori Solomon HealthDay Reporter
TUESDAY, April 22, 2025 (HealthDay News) — Patients with heart failure experience worsening neuropsychological outcomes over six months, according to a study published online April 8 in Advances in Clinical and Experimental Medicine.
Maria Jędrzejczyk, from Wroclaw Medical University in Poland, and colleagues examined the impact of heart failure on mental health, cognitive function, and self-care behaviors. The analysis included 162 heart failure patients (older than 60 years).
The researchers found that cognitive impairment was less severe in patients with heart failure with mildly reduced ejection fraction (HFmrEF) versus preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF; Mini-Mental State Examination median scores: 28 versus 27). Severity of depression worsened over six months, particularly in the HFpEF group (median Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale scores increased from 1 to 3). In all groups, self-care ability declined (median European Heart Failure Self-care Behavior Scale scores changed from 28 at baseline to 29 at six months). Additionally, N-terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide levels were higher in those with heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (3,437.7 pg/mL) versus both HFmrEF and HFpEF (2,171.2 and 977.1 pg/mL, respectively).
“The findings underscore the importance of integrating routine cognitive and psychological assessments into heart failure care and developing phenotype-specific therapeutic strategies to optimize patient outcomes,” the authors write. “Tailored interventions that address the specific challenges of each heart failure subtype, particularly cognitive deficits and depression, are essential for enhancing long-term health outcomes and quality of life.”
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