Med J Aust. 2025 Apr 21;222(7):348-355. doi: 10.5694/mja2.52635.
ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: To examine associations between remoteness of region of residence and in-hospital mortality for people admitted to hospital with heart failure in New South Wales during 2002-21.
STUDY DESIGN: Retrospective observational cohort study; analysis of New South Wales Admitted Patient Data Collection data.
SETTING, PARTICIPANTS: Adult (16 years or older) NSW residents admitted with heart failure to NSW public hospitals, 1 January 2002 – 30 September 2021. Only first admissions with heart failure during the study period were included.
MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: In-hospital mortality, by remoteness of residence (Australian Statistical Geography Standard), adjusted for age (with respect to median), sex, socio-economic status (Index of Relative Socioeconomic Advantage and Disadvantage [IRSAD], with respect to median), other diagnoses, hospital length of stay, and calendar year of admission (by 4-year group).
RESULTS: We included 154 853 admissions with heart failure; 99 687 people lived in metropolitan areas (64.4%), 41 953 in inner regional areas (27.1%), and 13 213 in outer regional/remote/very remote areas (8.5%). The median age at admission was 80.3 years (interquartile range [IQR], 71.2-86.8 years), and 78 591 patients were men (50.8%). The median IRSAD score was highest for people from metropolitan areas (metropolitan: 1000; IQR, 940-1064; inner regional: 934; IQR, 924-981; outer regional/remote/very remote areas: 930; IQR, 905-936). During 2002-21, 9621 people (6.2%) died in hospital; the proportion was 8.0% in 2002, 4.9% in 2021. In-hospital all-cause mortality was lower during 2018-21 than during 2002-2005 (adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 0.52; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.49-0.56); the decline was similar for all three remoteness categories. Compared with people from metropolitan areas, the odds of in-hospital death during 2002-21 were higher for people from inner regional (aOR, 1.12; 95% CI, 1.07-1.17) or outer regional/remote/very remote areas (aOR, 1.35; 95% CI, 1.25-1.45).
CONCLUSION: In-hospital mortality during heart failure admissions to public hospitals declined across NSW during 2002-21. However, it was higher among people living in regional and remote areas than for people from metropolitan areas. The reasons for the difference in in-hospital mortality should be investigated.
PMID:40253641 | DOI:10.5694/mja2.52635
