Older heart failure patients do better at home than in hospital, according to new study

Many of us have heard our parents tell us they want to be cared for in the comfort of their own homes, but sometimes when serious illness strikes we think they should be in a hospital setting. Well, a new study appearing in the September 28 Archives of Internal Medicine reports that older patients with decompensated congestive heart failure actually fared better at home than in a hospital setting. The study compared patients treated in a general ward in Italy with those treated at home with a doctor supervising the care. The Italian researchers suggest that the hospital setting is often a dangerous place for Seniors. While the study did not show an improved death rate for either group, it did indicate that for those treated at home it took, on average, longer for them to be readmitted. Among the group treated at home, they showed less depression and had improved nutrition and quality of life.