These tools will no longer be maintained as of December 31, 2024. Archived website can be found here. PubMed4Hh GitHub repository can be found here. Contact NLM Customer Service if you have questions.


Pubmed for Handhelds

PUBMED FOR HANDHELDS

Search MEDLINE/PubMed

  • Title: Pharmacologic management of heart failure among older adults by office-based physicians in the United States.
    Author: Croft JB, Giles WH, Roegner RH, Anda RF, Casper ML, Livengood JR.
    Journal: J Fam Pract; 1997 Apr; 44(4):382-90. PubMed ID: 9108836.
    Abstract:
    BACKGROUND: Despite the recent availability of new classes of heart failure medications, little is known about national patterns in the actual physician utilization of these drugs. METHODS: In the National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey, 2912 US physicians reported on 16,968 office visits in 1991-1992 with patients aged > or = 65 years. National estimates were obtained from weighted results that accounted for the complex sampling design. RESULTS: An estimated 8.3 million (2.6%) office visits with older adults involved heart failure. This included 9.3% of visits to cardiologists, 4.3% to internists, 3.5% to general and family physicians, and 0.6% to other physicians. The most frequently prescribed medications during visits with these patients were diuretics (69%), digitalis compounds (46%), angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors (30%), and nitrates (19%). Internists and general and family physicians prescribed angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors, digitalis compounds, and loop diuretics for patients with heart failure less often than did cardiologists. CONCLUSIONS: These are the first national surveillance estimates of physician practices in the management of heart failure. These data were collected during the same period in which heart failure clinical trial results were initially published, and they provide a baseline for monitoring the influence of recent clinical practice guidelines and professional education on changes in the management of heart failure by primary care physicians.
    [Abstract] [Full Text] [Related] [New Search]