To examine the impact of COVID-19 on acute heart failure (AHF) hospitalization rates, clinical characteristics and management of patients admitted to a tertiary Heart Failure Unit in London during the peak of the pandemic. Methods and resultsData from King's College Hospital, London, reported to the National Heart Failure Audit for England and Wales, between 2nd March -19 th April 2020 were compared both to a pre-COVID cohort and the corresponding time periods in 2017-2019 with respect to absolute hospitalization rates. Furthermore, we performed detailed comparison of patients hospitalized during the COVID-19 pandemic and patients presenting in the same period in 2019 with respect to clinical characteristics and management during the index admission.A significantly lower admission rate for AHF was observed during the study period compared to all other included time periods. Patients admitted during the COVID-19 pandemic had higher rates of NYHA III or IV symptoms (96% vs. 77%, p=0.03) and severe peripheral oedema (39% vs. 14%, p=0.01). We did not observe any differences in inpatient management, including place of care and pharmacological management of heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF).Conclusion Incident AHF hospitalization significantly declined in our centre during the COVID-19 pandemic, but hospitalized patients had more severe symptoms at admission. Further studies are needed to investigate whether the incidence of AHF declined or patients did not present to hospital while the national lockdown and social distancing restrictions were in place. From a public health perspective, it is imperative to ascertain whether this will be associated with worse long-term outcomes.

Aims Admission rates for acute decompensated heart failure declined during COVID‐19. However, the impact of this reduction on hospital mortality is unknown. We describe temporal trends in the presentation of patients with acute heart failure (HF) and their in‐hospital outcomes from two referral centres in London during the COVID‐19 pandemic. Methods and results A total of 1372 patients hospitalized for HF in two referral centres in South London between 7 th January and 14 th June 2020, were included in the study and compared to the same time period in 2019. The primary outcome was all‐cause in‐hospital mortality. HF hospitalizations were significantly reduced during the COVID‐19 pandemic, compared to 2019 (p<0.001). Specifically, we observed a temporary reduction in hospitalizations during the COVID‐19 peak, followed by a return to 2019 levels. Patients admitted during the COVID‐19 pandemic had similar demographic characteristics compared to the same period in 2019. However, in‐hospital mortality was significantly higher in 2020 compared to 2019 (p=0.015). Hospitalization in 2020 was independently associated with worse in‐hospital mortality (hazard ratio [HR] 2.23, 95% Confidence Interval [CI] 1.34 – 3.72; p=0.002). Conclusion During the COVID‐19 pandemic there was a reduction in HF hospitalizations and higher in‐hospital mortality. Hospitalisation for HF in 2020 is independently associated with more adverse outcomes. Further studies are required to investigate the predictors of these adverse outcomes to help inform potential changes to the management of HF patients while some constraints to usual care remain. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.