Husam Alfaleh

The prognostic impact of beta-blockers (BB) in coronary artery disease (CAD) is controversial, especially in the post-reperfusion era. We studied in-hospital cardiovascular events in patients hospitalized for acute HF, a previous history of CAD and a left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) ≥40%, in relation to BB on admission; and 1-year outcome in relation to BB on discharge, in the GULF aCute heArt failuRe (GULF-CARE) registry. From a total of 5005 patients included in the GULF-CARE registry, 303 patients with a previous history of CAD and a LVEF ≥40% on BB were propensity-matched to 303 patients without BB on admission...

Background Smoker's paradox has been observed with several vascular disorders, yet there are limited data in patients with acute heart failure (HF). We examined the effects of smoking in patients with acute HF using data from a large multicenter registry. The objective was to determine if the design and analytic approach could explain the smoker's paradox in acute HF mortality. Methods and Results The data were sourced from the acute HF registry (Gulf CARE [Gulf Acute Heart Failure Registry]), a multicenter registry that recruited patients over 10 months admitted with a diagnosis of acute HF from 47 hospitals in 7 Middle Eastern countries...

OBJECTIVE: Despite the expanding burden of heart failure (HF) worldwide, data on precipitating factors (PFs) in heart failure from developing countries; particularly from the Middle East is very limited. We examined PFs in patients hospitalized with acute HF in a prospective multicenter HF registry from seven Middle-Eastern countries. METHODS: Data were derived from Gulf CARE (Gulf aCute heArt failuRe rEgistry), a prospective multinational multicenter study of consecutive patients hospitalized with HF from 47 hospitals in 7 Middle Eastern countries between February 2012 and November 2012...

BACKGROUND: Fasting during the month of Ramadan is practiced by over 1.5 billion Muslims worldwide. It remains unclear, however, how this change in lifestyle affects heart failure, a condition that has reached epidemic dimensions. This study examined the effects of fasting in patients with acute heart failure (AHF) using data from a large multi-center heart failure registry. METHODS AND RESULTS: Data were derived from Gulf CARE (Gulf aCute heArt failuRe rEgistry), a prospective multi-center study of consecutive patients hospitalized with AHF during February-November 2012...

BACKGROUND: A U-shaped relationship has been reported between BMI and cardiovascular events among patients with acute heart failure (AHF). We hypothesized that an obesity paradox also governs the relationship between BMI and mortality in patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D) and AHF. METHODS: We studied 3-month and 12-month mortality in patients with T2D hospitalized for AHF according to 5 BMI categories: Underweight (<20kg/m2 ), normal weight (referent group, 20-24...

We assessed the frequency and implications of a history of syncope of up to 1 year prior to hospitalization with acute heart failure (AHF) between February and November 2012. Data were collected for 5005 patients hospitalized with AHF and analyzed and compared according to the absence/presence of a history of syncope (group 1 vs group 2). Prior syncope among patients with heart failure was 5.3%. Age, gender, hypertension, atrial fibrillation, bundle branch block, left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF), and obstructed coronary vessels were comparable in the 2 groups...

OBJECTIVE: To characterize risk profile of acute coronary syndrome (ACS) patients in different age groups and compare management provided to in-hospital outcome. DESIGN: Prospective multi-hospital registry. SETTING: Seventeen secondary and tertiary care hospitals in Saudi Arabia. PATIENTS: Five thousand and fifty-five patients with ACS. They were divided into four groups: ⩽40 years, 41-55 years, 56-70 years and ⩾70 years...