Bundle-Branch Block Morphology and Other Predictors of Outcome After Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy in Medicare Patients

Abstract

Background—Clinical trials of cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) have enrolled a select group of patients, with few patients in subgroups such as right bundle-branch block (RBBB). Analysis of population-based outcomes provides a method to identify real-world predictors of CRT outcomes. Methods and Results—Medicare Implantable Cardioverter-Defibrillator Registry (2005 to 2006) data were merged with patient outcomes data. Cox proportional-hazards models assessed death and death/heart failure hospitalization outcomes in patients with CRT and an implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (CRT-D). The 14 946 registry patients with CRT-D (median follow-up, 40 months) had 1-year, 3-year, and overall mortality rates of 12%, 32%, and 37%, respectively. New York Heart Association class IV heart failure status (1-year hazard ratio [HR], 2.23; 3-year HR, 1.98; P<0.001) and age ≥80 years (1-year HR, 1.74; 3-year HR, 1.75; P<0.001) were associated with increased mortality both early and late after CRT-D. RBBB (1-year ...