Changing epidemiological features of cardiac failure.

100 _ Important reductions in cardiovascular mortality that have occurred over the past three decades in most industrialised regions have not been accompanied by a decline in mortality or admissions to hospital for cardiac failure. ' Congestive heart failure (CHF) continues to be a lethal end stage of cardiovascular disease caused by hypertension, coronary disease, valve deformity, diabetes, and cardiomyopathy. As premature deaths from these conditions are avoided by means of more effective medical and surgical interventions, the prevalence of cardiac failure can be expected to rise because the predisposing conditions are palliated, not cured. Increased size of the elderly population also increases the prevalence of heart failure.