Abstract
BACKGROUND: This study investigated the impact on all-cause mortality of airflow limitation indicative of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease or restrictive spirometry pattern (RSP) in a stable systolic heart failure population. HYPOTHESIS: Decreased lung function indicates poor survival in heart failure. METHODS: Inclusion criteria: NYHA class II-IV and left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) < 45%. Prognosis was assessed with multivariate Cox proportional hazards models. Two criteria of obstructive airflow limitation were applied: FEV(1) /FVC < 0.7 (GOLD), and FEV(1) /FVC < lower limit of normality (LLN). RSP was defined as FEV(1) /FVC > 0.7 and FVC<80% or FEV(1) /FVC > LLN and FVC