ABSTRACT
Heart failure is traditionally considered to occur when the heart either cannot provide blood flow adequate for metabolic demands or when it can do so only at elevated filling pressures. High cardiac filling pressure leads to the venous congestion and fluid accumulation that characterize congestive heart failure (CHF). CHF is a complex clinical syndrome rather than an etiologic diagnosis. It results from (over)expression of compensatory neurohormonal (NH) and other responses to an underlying cardiac injury or abnormality. Abnormal systolic (pumping) or diastolic (filling) function can lead to CHF.
