ABSTRACT
Heart failure (HF) is recognized as a leading cause of death in the adult population. Recently, it has been claimed that HF is occurring in adults in epidemic proportions (1,2). The prevalence of HF has been reported to be 3 per 1000 person years (3). In 1913, MacKenzie (4) defined HF as ‘‘the condition in which the heart is unable tomaintain an efficient circulation when called upon to meet the efforts necessary to the daily life of the individual,’’ whereas Lewis (5) regarded it as ‘‘inability of the heart to discharge its contents adequately.’’ Surprisingly, there is still no unanimity of opinion regarding
what constitutesHF and a variety of definitions are encountered in current texts.
