Baseline characteristics study population
| Total cohort (n=1228) | HFpEF (≥50%) (n=283) | HFmrEF (40%–49%) (n=169) | HFrEF (<40%) (n=776) | P value | |
| Age, years, median (IQR) | 74 (64–81) | 78 (70–83) | 76 (70–83) | 72 (61–79) | <0.001 |
| Age ≥75 years, n (%) | 596 (49) | 182 (64) | 96 (57) | 318 (41) | <0.001 |
| Male, n (%) | 733 (60) | 104 (37) | 96 (57) | 533 (69) | <0.001 |
| History of DM, n (%) | 376 (31) | 90 (32) | 61 (36) | 225 (29) | 0.183 |
| History of hypertension, n (%) | 659 (54) | 198 (70) | 99 (59) | 362 (47) | <0.001 |
| History of COPD, n (%) | 206 (19) | 59 (22) | 32 (20) | 115 (17) | 0.166 |
| Ischaemic aetiology, n (%) | 548 (50) | 142 (59) | 77 (50) | 329 (47) | 0.006 |
| Peripheral oedema at admission, n (%) | 707 (62) | 176 (67) | 89 (61) | 442 (61) | 0.155 |
| Rales at admission, n (%) | 847 (75) | 196 (75) | 115 (78) | 536 (74) | 0.492 |
| SBP at admission, mm Hg, mean±SD | 135±32 | 145±33 | 141±32 | 130±30 | <0.001 |
| DBP at admission, mm Hg, mean±SD | 81±22 | 81±24 | 79±21 | 81±20 | 0.408 |
| Heart rate at admission, bpm, mean±SD | 94±26 | 91±27 | 92±27 | 95±26 | 0.101 |
| Atrial fibrillation at admission, n (%) | 495 (43) | 140 (52) | 72 (46) | 283 (39) | 0.001 |
| Left ventricular ejection fraction, mean±SD | 36±15 | 58±8.8 | 43±2.9 | 26±7.0 | <0.001 |
| Laboratories findings, mean±SD | |||||
| Haemoglobin at admission, mmol/L | 7.9±1.2 | 7.5±1.3 | 8.0±1.2 | 8.0±1.2 | <0.001 |
| Serum urea at admission, mmol/L | 12±7.6 | 12±7.0 | 12±7.7 | 12±7.8 | 0.440 |
| Serum sodium at admission, mmol/L | 138±4.7 | 138±4.7 | 139±5.1 | 138±4.6 | 0.743 |
| eGFR at admission, mL/min/1.73 m | 57±33 | 54±24 | 55±28 | 56±35 | 0.611 |
| NT-proBNP at admission, pg/mL, median (IQR) | 6310 (3324–11839) | 4436 (2590–8669) | 5254 (3037–10868) | 7173 (4039–13264) | <0.001 |
| NT-proBNP at discharge, pg/mL, median (IQR) | 3053 (1425–6661) | 2147 (1114–4161) | 2743 (1351–6047) | 3695 (1611–7738) | <0.001 |
| NT-proBNP reduction, %, median (IQR) | 47 (20–70) | 47 (25–68) | 45 (17–70) | 47 (19–70) | 0.693 |
| Duration admission, days, median (IQR) | 9 (6–14) | 7 (6–13) | 8 (5–13) | 9 (6–15) | 0.010 |
| Discharge medication, n (%) | |||||
| Diuretics | 1076 (94) | 220 (92) | 144 (88) | 712 (95) | 0.417 |
| ACE-inhibitor/ARBs | 748 (65) | 131 (55) | 110 (67) | 507 (68) | <0.001 |
| Beta-blocker | 744 (65) | 144 (61) | 105 (64) | 495 (66) | 0.252 |
ARBs, angiotensin II receptor blockers; COPD, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease; DM, diabetes mellitus; DBP, diastolic blood pressure; eGFR, estimated glomerular filtration rate; HFmrEF, heart failure with midrange ejection fraction; HFpEF, heart failure with preserved ejection fraction; HFrEF, heart failure with reduced ejection fraction; NT-proBNP, N-terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide; SBP, systolic blood pressure.