The relationship between left ventricular systolic function and congestive heart failure diagnosed by clinical criteria.

Abstract

There is no uniformly accepted clinical definition for congestive heart failure (CHF), although criteria have been published by various groups. There is also no Circulation 77, No. 3, 607-612, 1988. CONGESTIVE HEART FAILURE is among the most frequently encountered cardiac diagnoses. Prevalence of congestive heart failure is estimated to be 1% in the United States,1 and Framingham data gives an incidence rate of about 2 per 1000 persons per year.2 Only 50% of patients diagnosed as having congestive heart failure survive for 5 years.' It also has major impact in terms of morbidity and hospitalization; among elderly patients, it is the most common medical indication for hospitalization.3Epidemiologic studies in congestive heart failure have been hampered by the lack of uniform diagnostic criteria, relying instead on physician diagnosis of the disease. The Framingham Study2 created clinical criteria for diagnosing congestive heart failure (

Serial changes in nasal potential difference and lung electrical impedance tomography at high altitude

“…*P Ͻ 0.05. nary edema has been the absence of an accurate measure of EVLW that can be used in the mountain environment. Clinical examination and chest radiography are insensitive to small increases in EVLW (31,47). Magnetic resonance imaging is highly sensitive but of limited practical use at high altitude (10).…”

Latin American consensus on hypertension in patients with diabetes type 2 and metabolic syndrome

“…Uma história clínica cuidadosa ajuda a detectar os sintomas da insuficiência cardíaca (dispneia aos esforços, ortopneia, tosse noturna e fatigabilidade fácil), embora pacientes com disfunção sistólica do ventrículo esquerdo possam não apresentar esses sintomas (82). Por isso, o diagnós-tico da insuficiência cardíaca nos pacientes diabéticos e hipertensos pode requerer provas adicionais.…”

Defining Diastolic Heart Failure

“…18,19 Other investigators have also supported the need for an imaging study to assess LV function as a part of the diagnosis of CHF. 20,21 We think that although the assessment of LV systolic function is critical in determining the optimal treatment for patients with CHF, the diagnosis of CHF is clinical and should not be made on the basis of LV ejection fraction (EF). Furthermore, for some research studies, the diagnosis of CHF should be made with the physician blinded to LV systolic function to avoid potential diagnostic biases.…”