Safety of human serum albumin infusion in heart failure patients with hypoproteinemia: a propensity score-matched analysis

Objectives

Heart failure, especially in the elderly, is a growing global issue. This research explores the safety of human albumin infusion in treating heart failure patients with hypoalbuminemia, despite limited clinical data on its use with diuretic therapy.

Methods

Data were collected from the Medical Information Mart for Intensive Care III (MIMIC-III) database, which included a cohort of 6094 patients diagnosed with heart failure. Propensity score matching, logistic regression, Kaplan-Meier curves, and Locally Weighted Scatterplot Smoothing (LOWESS) curves were used to examine how albumin administration correlates with different clinical results. The evaluated results comprised in-hospital mortality, cumulative fluid output over 24 hours, Length of Stay in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU LOS), and overall hospitalization duration (hospital LOS).

Results

Infusing albumin was found to be markedly linked with higher in-hospital mortality among heart failure patients whose serum albumin levels were ≤ 2.9 g/dL (p < 0.001). However, no statistically significant correlation was found between the patients with levels > 2.9 g/dL (p = 0.62). Following propensity score matching in the ≤ 2.9 g/dL serum albumin group, albumin infusion was linked to prolonged hospital and ICU stays (p = 0.002, p < 0.001), but showed no significant association with total 24 hour fluid output and 90-day survival (p = 0.173, p = 0.656).

Conclusion

The use of albumin has been linked to increased risk-adjusted mortality during hospitalization, as well as prolonged stays in both hospital and ICU settings for patients with heart failure and low levels of serum albumin. Physicians should exercise caution when considering the administration of albumin in these cases.