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Heart failure arises when structural or functional abnormalities prevent the heart from properly filling with or ejecting blood, so that the heart cannot meet the metabolic needs of the peripheral tissue or can do so only in the face of elevated filling pressures. Additional terminology describing failure of the cardiovascular system is based upon the specific organs or tissues involved. The haemodynamic and circulatory consequences of heart failure involve decreased cardiac output, vasoconstriction, retention of sodium and water, and activation of neurohormonal pathways, including the sympathetic nervous system and the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone axis. The chapter looks at Mechanisms of heart failure; Global cardiac function; and Clinical presentation of heart failure.
Heart failure, Page 1 of 1
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