Competing risks between mortality and heart failure hospital re-admissions: a community-based investigation from the Trieste area

Predictors of mortality and readmission among patients hospitalized for heart failure (HF) were investigated in a large, unselected population of the Trieste area. The cohort of 4666 patients survived at the index admission in the period 2009-2014 was followed after discharge. Incidence of mortality and re-HF admission within 30 days and one year were computed, by comparing cumulative incidence probabilities with cause-specific Kaplan-Meier curves. Competing risks regression was used to find factors associated respectively with re-HF admission and death. Two distinct risk profiles were obtained, particularly for early outcomes, useful for better targeting treatment of these high-risk patients.