Highlights include results from the SCALE-HF 1 study on the performance of a novel congestion index that provides alerts for fluid accumulation preceding heart failure events; and a state-of-the-art review on how kinlessness, social isolation, and loneliness are interconnected and distinct markers of social health among older adults with advanced heart failure.

WASHINGTON, DC (APRIL 10, 2025) – Hospitalizations and urgent care visits for decompensated heart failure (HF) are associated with adverse clinical outcomes and are a central driver of healthcare spending. Patients are encouraged to monitor their weight to identify changes in volume status to predict volume overload and prevent these healthcare events. A more precise noninvasive monitoring option that can predict HF events earlier and with superior accuracy compared with traditional strategies could significantly impact patient outcomes.
 
The Journal of Cardiac Failure (JCF) April 2025 issue, now online, includes updates on utilizing noninvasive remote monitoring solutions to prevent hospitalizations through the early prediction and management of HF.

“We’re grateful to our authors for their submissions of exceptional science to JCF. This month, we are thrilled to be able to share novel insights from SCALE-HF 1 highlighting the potential utility of additional non-invasive monitoring approaches to enhance risk prediction in HF. Moreover, we share impactful data regarding the challenges of kinlessness for older adults with advanced HF – these data will help to enhance your management for patients living with HF,” said JCF co-editors-in-chief, Anuradha Lala, MD, and Robert J. Mentz, MD.

Key Highlights include: 

Results from SCALE-HF 1

Impact of Kinlessness on Older Adults with Advanced HF

Surveillance and Alert-based Multiparameter Monitoring to Reduce Worsening Heart Failure Events: Results from SCALE-HF 1

The SCALE-HF 1 study evaluated the ability of a cardiac scale that is similar in appearance to a bathroom scale, but that also measures multiple hemodynamic parameters to predict HF events with high sensitivity and low alert rates.

Impact of Kinlessness on Older Adults with Advanced Heart Failure

A retrospective analysis of survival in a real-world cohort of patients with ATTR-CM from the Transthyretin Amyloidosis Outcomes Survey (THAOS) registry, identifies new evidence on the efficacy and safety of tafamidis in real-world settings, reinforcing the recommendation for its early initiation in patients with ATTR-CM.

Examining Heart Failure Outcomes Amid Housing Insecurity

For patients with HF, kinlessness, or not having a living partner or child, are intertwined with health care outcomes and may be a barrier to certain treatments, such as heart transplantation and mechanical heart pumps. New strategies are needed to make sure adults without kin can receive HF treatment equal to that of those who have kin.

The full line-up is as follows:  

Original Research Papers  

• Clinician Insights into Effective Components, Delivery Characteristics and Implementation Strategies of Ambulatory Palliative Care for People with Heart Failure: A Qualitative Analysis 
  • Editorial: Extending the Reach: Ambulatory Specialty Palliative Care for People with Heart Failure
• Racial Differences of Cardiac Structure and Function in Heart Failure With Preserved Ejection Fraction 
• Prescription Patterns in the Management of Heart Failure and Its Association With Readmissions: A Retrospective Analysis
  • Patient Focus Summary: Patient Focus: Rates of Heart Failure Medicines and Hospital Readmission: An explanation of “Prescription Patterns in the Management of Heart Failure and its Association with Readmissions: A Retrospective Analysis”
  • Editorial: Breaking Prescription Patterns: The Persistent Challenge of Guideline-directed Medical Therapy Underuse
• Rationale and Design of the DECONGEST (Diuretic Treatment in Acute Heart Failure With Volume Overload Guided by Serial Spot Urine Sodium Assessment) Study 
• Surveillance and Alert-based Multiparameter Monitoring to Reduce Worsening Heart Failure Events: Results From SCALE-HF 1 
  • Editorial: Weighing the Future: A Novel Tool to Manage Patients With Heart Failure
• A Machine Learning-derived Risk Score Improves Prediction of Outcomes After LVAD Implantation: An Analysis of the INTERMACS Database 
• Wearable Accelerometer-Derived Measures of Physical Activity in Heart Failure: Insights From the DETERMINE trials 
  • Editorial: Weighing the Benefits of Wearable Devices in Heart Failure Trials

State-of-the-Art-Review

• The Impact of Kinlessness on Older Adults with Advanced Heart Failure 

Perspectives

• At the Heart of Transition: A Journey in Gratitude
• Windy City Breakthroughs: Highlights from the American Heart Association Scientific Sessions 2024 
• Increasing Evidence Supports the Benefits of Rapid Uptitration of the Neurohormonal Blockade in HFmrEF/HFpEF Patients With AHF

Brief Reports 

• Effects of a Web-based Multiple Component Mindfulness Meditation for Pulmonary Hypertension Program on Symptoms and Health-related Quality of Life: A Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial 
• The Rise of Patient-Reported Outcome Measures: Trends in Heart Failure Clinical Trials 
• Assessment of Revascularization Preferences With Best-Worst Scaling Among Patients With Ischemic Heart Disease 
• Suboptimal Titration of Heart Failure Medications in Pediatric Patients: Baseline Data from ACTION

JCF Ignite! 

• A Question in the Era of Multiple Effective Therapies for Transthyretin Amyloid Cardiomyopathy (ATTR-CM): Is Transthyretin Biology a Driver of Disease Progression?

Early Career and Trainee Spotlight

• Lessons Learned From 2 Research Studies Enrolling Underrepresented Patients With Ventricular Assist Devices and Their Family Caregivers

Patient Story

• Without Known Cause: Contextualizing the Body

View the full issue online. For interviews with authors, please contact Alyssa Altonen at aaltonen@hfsa.org. 
 

About the Journal of Cardiac Failure

The Journal of Cardiac Failure (JCF) publishes the highest quality science in the field of heart failure with a focus on diversity, equity, and inclusion, mentorship, multidisciplinary partnerships, and patient-centeredness. Published papers span original investigator-initiated work to state-of-the-art reviews, guidelines and scientific statements, expert perspectives, early career and trainee spotlight pieces, patient and patient-partner narratives. JCF also emphasizes the power of language and prioritizes innovative approaches to dissemination of published work to reach and impact the broader heart failure community.

About the Heart Failure Society of America

The Heart Failure Society of America, Inc. (HFSA) represents the first organized effort by heart failure experts from the Americas to provide a forum for all those interested in heart function, heart failure, and congestive heart failure (CHF) research and patient care. The mission of HFSA is to provide a platform to improve and expand heart failure care through collaboration, education, innovation, research, and advocacy. HFSA members include physicians, scientists, nurses, nurse practitioners, pharmacists, trainees, other healthcare workers and patients. For more information, visit hfsa.org.

Media Contact: Alyssa Altonen, aaltonen@hfsa.org