Social factors best predicted long-term death in a Brazilian cohort
Admission to the hospital serving poorer populations was linked to higher mortality than the other hospital, with a relative measure called a hazard ratio of 2.43.
Limit: The study included only patients at two private centers in urban Brazil
Edited by Boris Djordjevic · AgingResearch.News
Researchers retrospectively analyzed a prospective observational cohort of 1,023 patients hospitalized for decompensated heart failure—a worsening of heart failure—at two private Brazilian hospitals. Patients received standardized care. Their mean age was 76.3 years, and 53.9% were men.
Over a median follow-up of 6.5 years, in-hospital mortality was 10.8% and post-discharge mortality was 64.1%. Admission to the hospital serving lower socioeconomic populations was associated with higher mortality, with a hazard ratio of 2.43 compared with the other hospital. Hazard ratios compare risk over time. Brown/Black ethnicity was also linked to higher mortality, with a hazard ratio of 1.44. Older age, prior diabetes and prior heart failure also independently predicted death. Hospital unit and race/skin color were the strongest long-term mortality predictors, outperforming conventional clinical variables in the model.
Why it matters
In this cohort, whose mean age was 76.3 years, incorporating social factors into risk models could help refine assessments after discharge and promote more equitable heart care.
Caveats
This observational analysis cannot establish cause and effect. The findings were reported in a conference abstract and concern patients hospitalized at two private centers in urban Brazil, not heart failure patients generally.
The paper
Hospital Barra D'or; Federal University of Rio de Janeiro
ESC Congress 2026 Abstract, Oct 26, 2026
Presented at ESC Congress 2026
