Congestive heart failure with preserved left ventricular systolic function has emerged as a growing epidemic medical syndrome in developed countries, which is characterized by high morbidity and mortality rates. Rapid and accurate diagnosis of this condition is essential for optimizing the therapeutic management. The diagnosis of congestive heart failure is challenging in patients presenting wi...

To the Editor: Anemia has recently become an important issue in patients with heart failure, and in the January 21, 2003 issue of Circulation, 3 studies relating to this subject were published.1–3 In one of these studies, Ezekowitz et al1 showed that anemia is common and is an independent prognostic marker for mortality in community-based patients with congestive heart failure (CHF). To determi...

Despite the major advances in medical drug therapy, heart failure remains a syndrome associated with high mortality and morbidity. Biventricular or left ventricular (LV) short atrioventricular (AV) delay pacing is being tested in congestive heart failure patients with left bundle branch block. The aim is to resynchronise the dyscoordinate LV contraction. A number of studies are underway, but it...

1. Sarnoff SJ, Berglund E: Neurohemodynamics of pulmonary edema. IV. Effect of systemic vasoconstriction and subsequent vasodilation on flow and pressures in systemic and pulmonary vascular beds. Am J Physiol 170: 588, 1952 2. Imperial ES, Levy MN, Zieske H Jr: Outflow resistance as an independent determinant of cardiac performance. Circ Res 9: 1148, 1961 3. Sonnenblick EH, Downing SE: Afterloa...

Kinsey and White (1940) found clinical evidence of pulmonary infarction in 14 % of patients surviving episodes of cardiac failure and in 29% of those dying in heart failure but not submitted to necropsy. Where necropsy was carried out the incidence of pulmonary infarction was found to be nearly 50%. Wishart and Chapman (1948) found clinical or necropsy evidence of pulmonary embolism in only 6.5...

Heart failure is defined as the inability of the heart to supply sufficient blood flow to meet the needs of the body. The term “congestive heart failure” implies that the impaired blood flow is causing fluid retention in the lungs, legs, ankles or feet. Other common symptoms include shortness of breath when lying down or during exercise, fatigue and weakness, reduced exercise capacity, and rapi...

Diuretics (see Table 1.1 for a physiological classification) remain an important part of the medical therapy for patients with congestive heart failure (CHF). They control fluid retention and rapidly relieve the congestive symptoms of heart failure (HF). The American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association assigned them a class I indication in patients with symptomatic heart failure wh...

As a result of their studies of the respiratory exchange of decompensated cardiac patients during and after exercise, Eppinger, Kisch and Schwarz (1927) concluded that the buffering power of the tissues was diminished. Laszlo (1928) found diminished phosphate content of the cardiac and skeletal muscle of such individuals. Harrison and Pilcher determined oxygen utilization during various degrees...

INTRODUCTION Surgically induced, combined volume and pressure overload has been used in rabbits to create a simplified and reproducible model of acute left ventricular (LV) failure. MATERIALS AND METHODS New Zealand white male rabbits (n = 24, mean weight 3.1 ± 0.2 kg) were randomly assigned to either the Control group (n = 10) or to the Heart Failure group (HF, n = 14). Animals in the Contro...