Prevalence of in-hospital nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drug exposure in patients with a primary diagnosis of heart failure

AIM: To determine the prevalence of in-hospital nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drug (NSAID) exposure and associated outcomes in patients admitted with a primary diagnosis of heart failure.

METHODS: We performed a propensity-matched cohort analysis of patients admitted to Houston Methodist Hospital System with a primary diagnosis of heart failure according to the International Classification of Diseases-9-Clinical Modification (ICD-9-CM) from January 1, 2011 to December 31, 2014.

RESULTS: Of the 9742 patients admitted with a primary diagnosis of heart failure, 384 patients (3.9%) were exposed to NSAID. After applying propensity scores we matched 305 NSAID exposed with 915 unexposed patients. Patients with in-hospital NSAID exposure had a longer length of stay (7.0±8.8 days vs 6.1±8.5; P=.003) and increased prevalence of worsening renal function (34.4% vs 27.9%; P=.030). There were not statically significant differences in in-hospital mortality rate or 30-day all-cause readmission rate.

CONCLUSION: Exposure to NSAID in patients admitted with a primary diagnosis of heart failure was low but was associated with adverse outcomes including longer length of stay and higher prevalence or worsening renal function.