Heterogeneous Outcomes of Heart Failure with Better Ejection Fraction.

We evaluated the heterogeneity of outcomes among heart failure patients with ventricular recovery. The BEST trial studied patients with left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) ≤ 35%. Serial LVEF assessment was performed at baseline, 3 months, and 12 months. Heart failure with better ejection fraction (HFbEF) was defined as an LVEF > 40% at any point. Of the patients who survived to 1 year, 399 (21.3%) had HFbEF. Among subjects with HFbEF, 173 (43.4%) had "extended" recovery, 161 (40.4%) had "late" recovery, and 65 (16.3%) patients had "transient" recovery. Subjects with HFbEF had an improved event-free survival from death or first HF hospitalization compared to subjects without recovery (HR 0.50, 95% CI, 0.39-0.64, p < 0.001). Compared to "transient" recovery, "late" and "extended" recovery were associated with an improved event-free survival from all-cause death and HF hospitalization (HR 0.55, 95% CI, 0.34-0.90, p = 0.016). Our study shows patients with HFbEF to be a heterogeneous population with differing prognoses.