Does a brief functional assessment in the emergency department predict outcomes of patients admitted with heart failure? The FASTER-HF study.

Background: Evaluation of patients with acute decompensated heart failure includes symptom review, biomarker measurement and comorbidity assessment. Early objective evaluation of functional status is generally not performed.

Aim: To investigate whether a simple low-impact functional assessment and measurement of sarcopenia would be safe, feasible and predictive of hospital length of stay and all-cause 30-day hospital readmission.

Beyond warfarin: a patient-centered approach to selecting novel oral anticoagulants for stroke prevention in atrial fibrillation.

Background: Warfarin reduces stroke in patients with atrial fibrillation. However, its narrow therapeutic index and need for chronic monitoring are barriers to its optimal utilization in many patients. The recent introduction of 3 novel oral anticoagulants (NOACs), as alternatives to warfarin, may change the eligibility and management of patients with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation (NVAF) who require systemic anticoagulation.