A new study led by a cardiologist at Duke University in North Carolina finds that Black patients with heart failure were more likely than White patients with heart failure to be hospitalized for complications of the disease. The data showed that Black patients tended to be younger, in poorer physical shape, and to suffer from other health problems such as hypertension and diabetes.
The study examined data from a study called HF-ACTION which sought evidence of whether exercise training helped people live longer after surviving heart failure. The statistics showed that for Blacks who survived heart failure, 18 percent died over the next 30 months and 67 percent were hospitalized for complications. For Whites, 16 percent died and 62 percent were hospitalized. After accounting for differences between patients relating to their health at the start of the study, researchers found that Blacks were 58 percent more likely than Whites to be hospitalized for complications.
The study was published in the American Heart Journal.
