PROPORTION OF HEART FAILURE PATIENTS RECEIVING GUIDELINE RECOMMENDED DOSES OF BETA BLOCKERS IN GEORGIA: A STUDY ON TITRATION AND TOLERABILITY.

The inability to use beta-blockers, one of the most important medications for heart failure, is a major problem in Georgia, as only 25.67% of patients were able to take the recommended dose of the medication. Since 24.17% of patients were able to titrate to a higher dose of beta blockers, we can conclude that with long-term and careful control of heart failure some patients may be able to titrate to a higher dose of beta blockers through adaptation to the medication and to the cardiac function. It is also possible that patients were not receiving optimal medication treatment at the time of medication initiation and the medication could actually have been titrated to a higher dose. This fact highlights the importance of attempting to titrate to a higher dose of beta blockers, as 24.17% of patients saw improvement in their prescribed medication over the course of the study.