Assessing proper patient-reported outcomes after recent discharge in acute heart failure – A Longitudinal Study

Aims Acute decompensation of heart failure (HF) is a major cause of hospital admissions and adverse outcomes. Patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) offer valuable insights into patient experience and may support treatment decisions. This study aimed to assess PROMs in patients hospitalized for acute decompensated HF at multiple time points after discharge to evaluate the feasibility of repeated PROM assessments and to capture changes in health status, medication management, and quality of life. Methods and Results Consecutive patients hospitalized for decompensated HF completed PROMs at 30 days, 6 months, and 12 months post-discharge. Collected data included demographics, comorbidities, hospitalizations, medication use, and PROMs using the KCCQ-12, PROMIS Physical Function Shortform 4a (PROMIS-4a), and PHQ-2. Generic quality of life was assessed with the EQ-5D. Among 99 patients (median age 66 years, 33% women, 90% NYHA III/IV on admission, 89% rehospitalized for HF within 12 months), all PROM instruments indicated substantial disease burden. Strong parallel reliabilities were observed (Cronbach’s alpha 0.75–0.90). PROMIS-4a was associated with age (p < 0.01) and sex (p = 0.04), while KCCQ-12 was associated with age (p = 0.04). All PROM scores improved during follow-up. Cardiovascular events—including transplantation, rehospitalization, emergency treatment, and therapy failure—did not significantly affect PROM trajectories. Conclusion Repeated assessment of patient-reported outcomes after HF decompensation is feasible. Using one or two PROM instruments may be sufficient, as the measures showed parallel development. Preliminary findings indicate that PROMs capture aspects of patient health not fully explained by HF severity or treatment modalities.