title: Eating a larger number of high-salt foods is not associated with short-term risk of acute decompensation in patients with chronic heart failure.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Risk factors for exacerbation of congestive heart failure have not been consistently validated.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  Our objective was to examine the role of short-term dietary sodium intake in acute decompensated heart failure.
  
  
  METHODS
  Patients with chronic congestive heart failure presenting to the Emergency Department for either acute decompensated heart failure (cases) or for other reasons (controls) were included in a case-control study. Cases and controls were compared with respect to age, smoking, recent sodium intake, medication nonadherence, coronary artery disease, and hypertension. A food frequency questionnaire was utilized to estimate recent sodium intake, defined as the number of food types consumed in the previous 3 days from the 12 highest-sodium food categories.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There were 182 patients enrolled. One patient was excluded due to uncertainty about the primary diagnosis. When adjusted for age, smoking, medication nonadherence, coronary artery disease, and hypertension, acute decompensated heart failure was not associated with short-term dietary sodium intake. The odds ratio for acute decompensated heart failure for each increase in the number of high-sodium food types consumed was 1.1 (95% confidence interval 0.9-1.3; p = 0.3). Acute decompensated heart failure was associated with medication nonadherence, with an odds ratio for decompensation of 2.5 (95% confidence interval 1.2-5.1; p = 0.01).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Patients with chronic congestive heart failure who presented to the Emergency Department with acute decompensated heart failure were no more likely to report consuming a greater number of high-sodium foods in the 3 days before than were patients with chronic congestive heart failure who presented with unrelated symptoms. On the other hand, those who presented with acute decompensated heart failure were significantly more likely to report nonadherence with medications.
authors.affiliation: Advocate Christ Medical Center, Oak Lawn, Illinois 60453, USA.
authors.forename: Jesse A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Borke
authors.forename: Peter C
authors.initials: PC
authors.lastname: Wyer
mesh_terms: D000208:Acute Disease; D000368:Aged; D002908:Chronic Disease; D004032:Diet / Q000009:adverse effects; D005260:Female; D006333:Heart Failure / Q000209:etiology*; D006801:Humans; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010865:Pilot Projects; D012982:Sodium, Dietary / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000009:adverse effects*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
chemical_list: D012982:Sodium, Dietary