Congestive Heart Failure (CHF)

Heart failure is a common and complex clinical syndrome that results from any functional or structural heart disorder, impairing ventricular filling or ejection of blood to the systemic circulation to meet the body's needs. Heart failure can be caused by diseases of the endocardium, myocardium, pericardium, heart valves, vessels or metabolic disorders. Most patients with Heart failure have symptoms due to impaired left ventricular myocardial function. Patients usually present with dyspnea and fatigue limiting exercise tolerance, fluid retention characterized by pulmonary and peripheral edema. Heart failure due to left ventricular dysfunction is categorized according to left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) into heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (LVEF 40% or less), known as HFrEF and heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (LVEF greater than 40%); known as HFpEF.