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Heart failure
hideHeart failure (HF) is a condition in which a problem with the structure or function of the heart impairs its ability to supply sufficient blood flow to meet the body's needs. It should not be confused with cardiac arrest (see Terminology, below).
Common causes of heart failure include myocardial infarction and other forms of ischemic heart disease, hypertension, valvular heart disease and cardiomyopathy. Heart failure can cause a large variety of symptoms such as shortness of breath (typically worse when lying flat, which is called orthopnea), coughing, ankle swelling and reduced exercise capacity. Heart failure is often undiagnosed due to a lack of a universally agreed definition and challenges in definitive diagnosis. Treatment commonly consists of lifestyle measures (such as decreased salt intake) and medications, and sometimes devices or even surgery.
Heart failure is a common, costly, disabling and deadly condition. In developing countries, around 2% of adults suffer from heart failure, but in those over the age of 65, this increases to 6—10%. Mostly due to costs of hospitalization, it is associated with a high health expenditure; costs have been estimated to amount to 2% of the total budget of the National Health Service in the United Kingdom, and more than $35 billion in the United States. Heart failure is associated with significantly reduced physical and mental health, resulting in a markedly decreased quality of life. With the exception of heart failure caused by reversible conditions, the condition usually worsens with time. Although some patients survive many years, progressive disease is associated with an overall annual mortality rate of 10%.
For more information about Heart failure, read the full article at
Wikipedia.
This text uses material from Wikipedia and is available under the GNU Free Documentation License.
News tagged with heart failure
Scientists grow mice heart muscle strip that beats
Oct 15, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists have grown a piece of heart muscle - and then watched it beat - by using stem cells from a mouse embryo, a big step toward one day repairing damage from heart attacks.
Sleep Apnea May Not Be Closely Linked to Heart Failure Severity
May 06, 2009 |
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Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and central sleep apnea (CSA) are not markedly decreased in heart failure (HF) patients managed with beta-blockers and spironolactone, reports a study in the March issue of Journal of Cardiac Fai ...
New study links vitamin D deficiency to cardiovascular disease and death
Nov 16, 2009 |
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While mothers have known that feeding their kids milk builds strong bones, a new study by researchers at the Heart Institute at Intermountain Medical Center in Salt Lake City suggests that Vitamin D contributes to a strong ...
Russian bomb physicist Ginzburg dead at 93
Nov 09, 2009 |
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Nobel Physics prize winner Vitaly Ginzburg, who helped develop the Soviet hydrogen bomb, has died at age 93, the Russian Academy of Sciences said Monday.
High Blood Pressure Medicines Show Promise for Treating Heart Disease
Medicine & Health / Medications
Oct 29, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Two medications commonly used to treat high blood pressure appear to be effective in treating one of the most common and potentially deadly forms of heart disease, according to a report by ...
Suppressing a gene in mice prevents heart from aging, preserves its function
Oct 12, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists prevented age-related changes in the hearts of mice and preserved heart function by suppressing a form of the PI3K gene, in a study reported in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association.
Viagra relatives may shrink abnormally large hearts
Sep 24, 2009 |
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Compounds related to Viagra, which is already in clinical trials to prevent heart failure, may also counter the disease in a different way, according to a study published online today in the journal Circulation Research. The re ...
New Zealand scientists develop wireless heart pump
Sep 16, 2009 |
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New Zealand scientists have developed the technology for a wireless heart pump they say could save thousands of lives and offer an alternative to heart transplants.
Link found between depression, early stages of chronic kidney disease
Sep 08, 2009 |
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One in five patients with chronic kidney disease is depressed, even before beginning long-term dialysis therapy or developing end-stage renal disease, UT Southwestern Medical Center researchers have found.
New Therapy that Prevents Heart Failure (w/ Video)
Sep 01, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Patients who had a cardiac resynchronization device combined with a defibrillator (CRT-D) implanted had a 34 percent reduction in their risk of death or heart failure when compared to patients ...
Severe breathing disorders during sleep are associated with an increased risk of dying
Aug 17, 2009 |
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Severe breathing disorders during sleep are associated with an increased risk of dying from any cause according to research published this week in the open access journal PLoS Medicine. The study finds that the increased risk o ...
High-fat diet affects physical and memory abilities of rats after 9 days
Aug 11, 2009 |
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Rats fed a high-fat diet show a stark reduction in their physical endurance and a decline in their cognitive ability after just nine days, a study by Oxford University researchers has shown.
Study reveals mounting evidence of fish oil's heart health benefits
Aug 03, 2009 |
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There is mounting evidence that omega-3 fatty acids from fish or fish oil supplements not only help prevent cardiovascular diseases in healthy individuals, but also reduce the incidence of cardiac events and mortality in ...
British girl's heart heals itself after transplant
Jul 14, 2009 |
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(AP) -- British doctors designed a radical solution to save a girl with major heart problems in 1995: they implanted a donor heart directly onto her own failing heart.
Human cardiac master stem cells identified
Jul 01, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Harvard Stem Cell Institute researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital have identified the earliest master human heart stem cell from human embryonic stem cells - ISL1+ progenitors - that ...
