Patient Characteristics, Management and Long-Term Outcomes of Patients With Cardiogenic Shock at a Large Safety Net Hospital

Data regarding cardiogenic shock (CS) from safety-net hospitals serving socioeconomically-disadvantaged patients are limited. In addition, little is known regarding long-term outcomes and management of heart failure-related CS (HF-CS), a population potentially especially vulnerable to adverse social determinants of health (SDOH). A single-center retrospective cohort study of patients with Stage C, D, or E CS at a public safety-net hospital between 2017 and 2023 was performed. Management and outcomes were compared between patients with HF-CS and myocardial infarction-CS (AMI-CS). The primary outcome was survival through 2 years. The cohort included 378 patients (median age 57y, 44% Black race, 35% Hispanic ethnicity, 81% HF-CS, 19% AMI-CS); 23% received mechanical circulatory support. Thirty-day mortality was lower among patients with HF-CS than AMI-CS (16% vs 28%; HR 0.50 [95% CI 0.30 to 0.84], p = 0.01]). In contrast, mortality from 31 days through 2 years was higher after HF-CS (45% vs 22%, HR 1.94 [1.11 to 3.38], p = 0.02). At long-term follow-up, 53% of survivors were on beta blockers and 32% on no guideline-directed medical therapies. Eighteen patients (5%) received transplant or left ventricular assist device, all of whom had HF-CS and survived through available follow up (median 2.3y [0.9 to 4.0]). In conclusion, in a large safety-net hospital serving a diverse population with adverse SDOH, HF-CS was much more common than AMI-CS, with lower short-term but higher long-term mortality in HF-CS. Use of advanced therapies was low, with favorable survival among patients who received these. These results highlight the importance of expanding access to specialized heart failure care for socially vulnerable patients with CS.