P1479 Prognostic value of integrated cardiopulmonary ultrasound in heart failure patients with reduced and preserved ejection fraction

Abstract Background Lung-ultrasound B-lines are the sonographic sign of pulmonary congestion and are present in patients with heart failure (HF). Their role as a diagnostic marker is quite established since they can be used for the differential diagnosis of dyspnea to both rule in or rule out HF, whereas their prognostic value at admission is less known. Purpose To assess the prognostic value of B-lines at admission in patients admitted to a Cardiology Department with a diagnosis of HF with reduced (HFrEF) and preserved (HFpEF) ejection fraction. Methods We enrolled a total of 310 consecutive in-patients (aged 69 ± 12 years, 751 males) who underwent on admission a two-dimensional and Doppler echocardiographic evaluation coupled with lung ultrasound assessment of B-lines, according to standardised protocols. The total number of B-line was obtained by summing the number of B-lines from 28 scanning sites on the anterior and lateral right and left hemithorax, as previously described. Results All patients were followed-up for a median period of 15 (interquartile range: 5-28) months for death and HF readmission. During the follow-up, 79 events occurred. Among standard echocardiographic parameters, ejection fraction (EF) <50%, tricuspid annular plane systolic excursion (TAPSE) < 17 mm, pulmonary artery systolic pressure (PASP) ³35 mmHg, inferior vena cava diameter >21 mm and total B-lines ³30 were predictors of events at univariate analysis, whereas only B-lines ³30 (hazard ratio [HR] 2.06; 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.04-4.10) and TAPSE <17 mm (HR 0.53; CI 0.29-0.97) were independent predictors at multivariate analysis. When analysing separately HFpEF patients (105 patients, 33.9%), B-lines ³30 was the only independent predictor of events (HR 6.11; CI 1.49-25.05) (Figure). Conclusions B-lines are a simple, user-friendly, bedside echographic sign of pulmonary congestion, that provides useful information not only for the diagnosis but also for the prognosis of HF patients. Their added value among standard echocardiographic parameters is stronger in patients with HFpEF compared to HFrEF. An integrated cardiopulmonary ultrasound assessment at HF admission provides excellent value for both diagnostic and prognostic stratification. Abstract P1479 Figure