Background : Studies have shown that early initiation of sacubitril/valsartan is safe and beneficial in acute decompensated heart failure, but they are usually focused on short-term outcomes and evidence is limited regarding long-term prognosis. To gu...
Background : Studies have shown that early initiation of sacubitril/valsartan is safe and beneficial in acute decompensated heart failure, but they are usually focused on short-term outcomes and evidence is limited regarding long-term prognosis. To guide real-world practice, we evaluated whether initiating angiotensin receptor-neprilysin inhibitor (ARNI) during the first hospitalization for heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF), compared with after discharge, influences long-term clinical outcomes. Methods : We retrospectively analyzed 270 patients hospitalized for the first time with HFrEF between January 2017 and October 2023. Patients were grouped by timing of ARNI initiation: during hospitalization (n = 83) or after discharge (n = 187). The primary endpoint was composite of heart failure rehospitalization or cardiovascular death. Time-varying coefficient Cox models were used to assess non-proportional hazards, and cumulative event risks at 1 and 3 years were also evaluated. Results : Over a median follow-up of 2.9 years, early in-hospital ARNI initiation was associated with a significantly lower cumulative incidence of the composite outcome (log-rank p = 0.002). Although baseline association was nonsignificant (adjusted HR = 1.001, p = 0.999), the interaction with log(time) was significant (adjusted HR = 0.323, 95% CI: 0.166–0.629, p < 0.001), suggesting increasing benefit over time. Piecewise analysis revealed the strongest effect during the 1–3 year interval (HR = 0.097, p = 0.021). At 1 and 3 years, in-hospital ARNI initiation was associated with absolute risk reductions of 10.7% (95% CI: 3.2–18.2%) and 21.5% (95% CI: 11.7– 31.3%). Conclusion : In patients hospitalized for the first time with HFrEF, in-hospital ARNI initiation was associated with progressively greater long-term reductions in HF rehospitalization and cardiovascular death compared to post-discharge initiation.