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Published on: July 18, 2014
Hospice Use Following Implantable Cardioverter-Defibrillator Implantation in Older Patients: Results From the
Daniel B Kramer1, Matthew R Reynolds2, Sharon-Lise Normand2
1From Hebrew SeniorLife Institute for Aging Research, Boston MA (D.B.K., S.L.M.); Smith Center for Outcomes Research in Cardiology, Division of Cardiology, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston MA (D.B.K.); Harvard Medical School, Boston MA (D.B.K., S.L.M.); Harvard Clinical Research Institute, Boston MA (M.R.R.); Lahey Hospital & Medical Center, Burlington, MA (M.R.R.); Department of Health Care Policy, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA (S.-L.N.); Department of Biostatistics, Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA (S.-L.N.); Center for Outcomes Research and Evaluation, Yale New Haven Hospital, Yale University, New Haven, CT (C.S.P.); Mid America Heart Institute, Kansas City, MO (J.A.S.); and Department of Health Services, Policy & Practice, Center for Gerontology and Health Care Research, Brown University School of Public Health, Providence, RI (V.M.). dkramer@bidmc.harvard.edu.
Older patients with implantable cardioverter-defibrillators (ICDs) have high rates of hospice enrollment, with nearly half either deceased or in hospice within five years. This highlights the need for palliative care preparedness in this population.
Area of Science:
- Cardiology
- Geriatrics
- Palliative Care
Background:
- Older recipients of implantable cardioverter-defibrillators (ICDs) face increased short-term mortality risks.
- Hospice utilization is common in older decedents but unknown for older ICD recipients.
Purpose of the Study:
- To determine hospice enrollment rates among older ICD recipients.
- To evaluate factors associated with hospice enrollment time in this demographic.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of Medicare patients aged >65 implanted with ICDs between 2006 and 2010.
- Evaluation of hospice enrollment proportion, cumulative incidence, and time-to-event factors.
Main Results:
- 50.9% of patients were deceased or in hospice 5 years post-implantation.
- 36.8% of decedents received hospice services.
- Older age, advanced heart failure, low ejection fraction, and regional hospice use predicted shorter time to hospice enrollment.
Conclusions:
- Over one-third of older ICD patients receive hospice care before death.
- Half of older ICD recipients are either deceased or in hospice within 5 years.
- Palliative care providers must be prepared for the specific needs of ICD patients.
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