Cardiovascular Diseases Commons^™

Examining Symptom Trajectories That Predict Worse Outcomes In Post-Cabg Patients, Ming-Fen Tsai, Shiow-Luan Tsay, Debra K. Moser, Tsuey-Yuan Huang, Feng-Chun Tsai

Nursing Faculty Publications

Background: Coronary artery bypass grafting is one of the most common interventional revascularisation procedures used to treat coronary artery disease worldwide. With a wide variability in postoperative cardiac symptoms, identification of symptom trajectories during the 3-month postoperative recovery period may improve clinicians’ abilities to support symptom recovery.

Aims: To identify distinct trajectories of cardiac symptoms seen over time in a cohort of patients during the 3-month post-coronary artery bypass grafting period, and determine clinical characteristics associated with different symptom trajectories postoperatively.

Methods: A prospective trial used the cardiac symptom survey to determine patient symptoms at baseline prior to surgery, and …

Differences Between Blacks And Whites With Coronary Heart Disease In Initial Symptoms And In Delay In Seeking Care, Sally B. Richards, Marjorie Funk, Kerry A. Milner

Nursing Faculty Publications

BACKGROUND: Mortality rates for coronary heart disease are higher in blacks than in whites. OBJECTIVES: To examine differences between blacks and whites in the manifestation of symptoms of coronary heart disease and in delay in seeking treatment. METHODS: Patients were directly observed as they came to an emergency department with symptoms suggestive of coronary heart disease. The sample included 40 blacks and 191 whites with a final diagnosis of angina or acute myocardial infarction. RESULTS: After controlling for pertinent demographic and clinical characteristics, logistic regression analysis revealed that blacks were more likely than whites to have shortness of breath (odds …