Abstract 825: Heart Failure Incidence and Prognosis in Post-Menopausal Women According to Different Diagnostic Criteria: The Women’s Health Initiative Hormone Therapy Randomized Trials

Background: Heart failure (HF) epidemiologic research is problematic because of a lack of universally applied, highly specific diagnostic criteria. We compared 2 sets of diagnostic criteria: one based on standardized clinical and radiographic data (Framingham - FHS) and another based on treating physician’s diagnosis and use of specific HF therapy (Women’s Health Initiative - WHI). Methods: In the WHI Hormone Therapy (HT) trials of 27,347 post-menopausal women age 50 –79 years, potential first time HF events were identified via participant self-report during semiannual contact or via adjudication of another primary outcome. All events were reviewed and adjudicated by 3 cardiologists using WHI and FHS criteria. Participants were categorized as no HF (HF0; n=25,554) if none of the criteria were met (no WHI/no FHS), HF by one criterion (HF1; n=275) if only WHI (n=259) or FHS (n=8) criteria were met (yes WHI/no FHS or no WHI/yes FHS), and HF by both criteria (HF2; n=331) if both criteria were met (yes WHI/yes...