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Low serum chloride is common in patients with chronic heart failure (CHF) and is associated with worse outcomes. We investigated the clinical and prognostic associations, including cause of death associations, of low serum chloride in patients referred to a secondary care clinic with suspected heart failure.

Patients with echocardiogram and serum chloride were evaluated (n = 5613). CHF was defined as signs and symptoms of the disease and either left ventricular systolic dysfunction (LVSD) worse than mild [heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF)] or LVSD mild or better and raised amino‐terminal pro‐B‐type natriuretic peptide (NT‐proBNP) levels (>125 ng/L) [heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF)]. Hypochloraemia was defined as greater than two standard deviations below the mean in the local normal distribution (<96 mmol/L). Of the 5613 …