Nursing home residents are characterised by high age and comorbidity. Chronic heart failure (CHF) occurs frequently, but is a relatively neglected diagnosis.
1 The main reasons why CHF is less frequently detected are the non-specific symptoms, comorbidity and limited access to echocardiography.
2-4 On the other hand, in some residents the diagnosis of CHF is made while their symptoms are caused by other disorders. Both undetected diagnosis and incorrect diagnosis will lead to inadequate treatment of the underlying disease, and will impair the quality of life. Natriuretic peptides are increasingly being used to aid the diagnosis of CHF. Its diagnostic value is particularly strong in dyspnoeic patients admitted to the emergency department but less strong in general practice.
5 Nursing home residents are usually of a high age and have multiple chronic diseases, such as renal dysfunction and diabetes. The role of natriuretic peptides for the diagnosis of CHF in this specific population may be limited, but so far it has not been extensively studied. In the present study we therefore aim to look at the prevalence of CHF, both undetected and incorrect diagnoses of CHF, and the diagnostic accuracy of NT-proBNP and BNP in nursing home residents. …
