Generalist and Cardiologist Care for Congestive Heart Failure
Authors: M.A. Nurhussein
Journal: Annals of Internal Medicine (2000)

Letters19 September 2000Generalist and Cardiologist Care for Congestive Heart FailureM.A. Nurhussein, MDM.A. Nurhussein, MDState University of New York Health Science Center at Brooklyn; Brooklyn, NY 11203 (Nurhussein)Search for more papers by this authorAuthor, Article, and Disclosure Informationhttps://doi.org/10.7326/0003-4819-133-6-200009190-00020 SectionsAboutFull TextPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail TO THE EDITOR:In these days of managed health care and focus on cost containment and outcome studies, the study by Auerbach and colleagues (1) on resource utilization and survival of patients with heart failure is a timely one. As a geriatrician, I am disturbed by the increased mortality over time, albeit marginal, of patients cared for by generalists. This finding is consistent with past studies suggesting superiority of specialist care (2).In looking at the patient characteristics in the two study groups, however, it is tempting to attribute the survival disparity to what I think are significant differences independent ...References1. Auerbach AD, Hamel MB, Davis RB, Connors AF, Regueiro C, Desbiens N, et al . Resource use and survival of patients hospitalized with congestive heart failure: differences in care by specialty of the attending physician. Ann Intern Med. 2000;132:191-200. LinkGoogle Scholar2. Edep ME, Shah NB, Tateo IM, Massie BM. Differences between primary care physicians and cardiologists in management of congestive heart failure: relation to practice guidelines. J Am Coll Cardiol. 1997;30:518-26. CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar3. Kannel WB, McGee DL. Diabetes and cardiovascular disease. The Framingham Study. JAMA. 1979;241:2035-8. CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar4. . Effects of enalapril on mortality in severe congestive heart failure. Results of the Cooperative North Scandinavian Enalapril Survival Study (CONSENSUS). N Engl J Med. 1987;316:1429-35. CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar Author, Article, and Disclosure InformationAffiliations: State University of New York Health Science Center at Brooklyn; Brooklyn, NY 11203 (Nurhussein) PreviousarticleNextarticle Advertisement FiguresReferencesRelatedDetailsSee AlsoResource Use and Survival of Patients Hospitalized with Congestive Heart Failure: Differences in Care by Specialty of the Attending Physician Andrew D. Auerbach , Mary Beth Hamel , Roger B. Davis , Alfred F. Connors Jr. , Carol Regueiro , Norman Desbiens , Lee Goldman , Robert M. Califf , Neal V. Dawson , Neil Wenger , Humberto Vidaillet , Russell S. Phillips , and Generalist and Cardiologist Care for Congestive Heart Failure Sanjay Srivatsa and Hamid R. Amjadi Generalist and Cardiologist Care for Congestive Heart Failure Andrew D. Auerbach , Russell S. Phillips , and Mary Beth Hamel Metrics 19 September 2000Volume 133, Issue 6Page: 481KeywordsCardiovascular diseasesHealth careHealth care utilizationHeart failureLife expectancyLongitudinal studiesMortalityMyocardial infarctionPatientsSurvival analysis ePublished: 19 September 2000 Issue Published: 19 September 2000 CopyrightCopyright © 2000 by American College of Physicians. All Rights Reserved.PDF DownloadLoading ...