fig2

Figure 2. Research Flowchart. T was defined as the interval between the initiation of any GDMT medication and the onset of acute heart failure. We extracted data from hospitalization records of all patients diagnosed with acute heart failure (AHF) and acute exacerbation of chronic heart failure (CHF-AE). For patients with multiple Intensive Care Unit (ICU) admissions, we primarily collected all records from their first ICU admission Our exclusion criteria were: (1) No record of ICU admission; (2) Hospital staytime exceeding 90 days; (3) Complete absence of vital signs data. Finally, a total of 7,002 patients were enrolled in this study. T was divided into three groups: 0 ≤ T ≤ 1 day, 1 day < T ≤ 4 days, and T > 4 days. GDMT: Guideline-directed medical therapy.