Cognitive Function Does Not Impact Self-reported Health-Related Quality of Life in Heart Failure Patients.
Emily C Gathright, Michael J Fulcher, Mary A Dolansky and 5 others
PMID 26132279WHAT IT FOUND
Objective cognitive testing showed little link to self-reported quality of life in heart failure patients.
Depression and disease severity were the strong predictors. Executive function had a tiny, weak association, but overall, cognitive deficits did not explain poor quality of life.
Key findings
01Depressive symptoms and heart failure severity were the primary drivers of poor health-related quality of life, accounting for 50.2% of the variability.
02Cognitive function was generally not related to quality of life. Only executive function showed a weak, statistically significant association, explaining just 0.6% of the variance.
03There was no evidence of a curvilinear relationship between quality of life and any domain of cognitive function.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTs
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What it does not show
The study is cross-sectional, so it cannot determine if cognitive impairment causes changes in quality of life over time. The sample consisted of outpatients with predominantly NYHA Class II or III heart failure, meaning results may not apply to patients with severe Class IV symptoms or those recently hospitalized. The overall quality of life scores in the sample were high, which may limit the ability to detect relationships in patients with more severe impairment. The neuropsychological testing was for research purposes only and was not used for clinical diagnosis.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume that cognitive deficits are the reason for a heart failure patient's poor quality of life. This study suggests that depression and disease severity are far stronger predictors, so attributing poor quality of life to cognitive issues alone may lead to missed opportunities for treating mood and physical symptoms.