AHRQ finds significant drop in hospital deaths from heart failure between 2000-2007

The death rate of hospital patients who were admitted primarily for heart failure fell roughly by half between 2000 and 2007 - from 55 deaths to 28 deaths per 1,000 admissions, according to the latest News and Numbers from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.

The federal agency also found that between 2000 and 2007, for heart failure deaths of hospitalized patients:

• People age 85 and over experienced the largest drop from 87 to 48 deaths per 1,000 admissions.

• For seniors age 65 and older, the rate fell from 64 to 34 deaths per 1,000 admissions.

• The rate for people ages 45 to 64 dropped from 28 to 15 deaths per 1,000 admissions, while the rate for people ages 18 to 44 fell from 19 to 12 deaths per 1,000 admissions.