ABSTRACT

Cardiovascular disease remains the most common cause of death and disability among Americans, claiming more lives each year than cancer, diabetes mellitus, HIV and accidents combined (Heron et al. 2009). Ischemic heart disease is the predominant contributor to cardiovascular morbidity and mortality; ~1 million myocardial infarctions (MIs) occur per year in the USA, while ~5 million patients suffer from chronic heart failure (Roger et al. 2011). Although implementation of cardiovascular prevention strategies has led to a signifi cant decrease in the incidence of acute MI, and advances in medical and catheter-based therapies have reduced MI-associated mortality, new approaches would be most valuable for patients who go on to develop ventricular dysfunction and/or heart failure (White et al. 2005).