ABSTRACT
Heart failure is a clinical syndrome resulting from a structural or functional cardiac disorder that impairs the ability of the ventricle to fill with or eject blood commensurate with the needs of the body, or that precludes it from doing so in the absence of increased filling pressure. Heart failure is the end stage of all diseases of the heart and is a major cause of morbidity and mortality. Although heart failure may result from disorders of the pericardium, myocardium, endocardium or valve structures, or the great vessels of the heart, or from rhythm disturbances, it is usually discussed primarily in terms of myocardial dysfunction.
