16
views
0
recommends
+1 Recommend
1 collections
    0
    shares
      • Record: found
      • Abstract: found
      • Article: found

      Changing Ideas in the Treatment of Heart Failure -An Overview

      review-article
      Cardiology
      S. Karger AG

      Read this article at

      ScienceOpenPublisherPubMed
      Bookmark
          There is no author summary for this article yet. Authors can add summaries to their articles on ScienceOpen to make them more accessible to a non-specialist audience.

          Abstract

          Patients with heart failure should stop smoking, maintain an optimal weight and limit their intake of salt. Alcohol abuse should be avoided. The detection and early treatment of hypertension appears to have had a major impact in preventing heart failure.Diuretics revolutionized the treatment of congestive heart failure and their proper and appropriate use can alleviate peripheral and pulmonary oedema. Diuretics should not be overused and care should be taken to avoid hypokalaemia.Controversy surrounds the use of digoxin in patients in sinus rhythm; the drug should be used in patients in atrial fibrillation. The use of an inotropic drug may be harmful in the presence of coronary artery disease. A reduction in the current use of digoxin might be of benefit to many patients with heart failure. When the drug is prescribed it should be used in a therapeutic and not homeopathic dose.Recent interest has been directed toward the use of vasodilators and the angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors in patients with heart failure. In my opinion, these drugs should be used after patients have been treated with thiazide and loop diuretics. Vasodilators are particularly beneficial in acute heart failure or in patients with chronic heart failure when the symptoms are related to fluid overload and volume expansion. The cause of symptoms in patients with chronic heart failure optimally treated with diuretics is controversial. Shortness of breath may not be simply related to the left atrial pressure. Fatigue and breathlessness may be sensations arising from metabolic changes and neurogenic signals in skeletal muscle deprived of an adequate blood flow on exercise. In such circumstances, for treatment to be effective, blood flow to exercising skeletal muscle must be increased. There is a limit to the power output of the damaged heart but symptomatic benefit to patients may be achieved by more appropriate redirection of the limited cardiac output.

          Related collections

          Author and article information

          Journal
          CRD
          Cardiology
          10.1159/issn.0008-6312
          Cardiology
          S. Karger AG
          978-3-8055-4626-3
          978-3-318-01758-8
          0008-6312
          1421-9751
          1987
          1987
          11 November 2008
          : 74
          : Suppl 1
          : 53-57
          Affiliations
          Cardiothoracic Institute and National Heart Hospital, London, UK
          Article
          174268 Cardiology 1987;74:53–57
          10.1159/000174268
          3300978
          2a860085-fd6c-4344-ad34-9228785e08ad
          © 1987 S. Karger AG, Basel

          Copyright: All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be translated into other languages, reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, microcopying, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. Drug Dosage: The authors and the publisher have exerted every effort to ensure that drug selection and dosage set forth in this text are in accord with current recommendations and practice at the time of publication. However, in view of ongoing research, changes in government regulations, and the constant flow of information relating to drug therapy and drug reactions, the reader is urged to check the package insert for each drug for any changes in indications and dosage and for added warnings and precautions. This is particularly important when the recommended agent is a new and/or infrequently employed drug. Disclaimer: The statements, opinions and data contained in this publication are solely those of the individual authors and contributors and not of the publishers and the editor(s). The appearance of advertisements or/and product references in the publication is not a warranty, endorsement, or approval of the products or services advertised or of their effectiveness, quality or safety. The publisher and the editor(s) disclaim responsibility for any injury to persons or property resulting from any ideas, methods, instructions or products referred to in the content or advertisements.

          History
          Page count
          Pages: 5
          Categories
          Paper

          General medicine,Neurology,Cardiovascular Medicine,Internal medicine,Nephrology
          General medicine, Neurology, Cardiovascular Medicine, Internal medicine, Nephrology

          Comments

          Comment on this article