Doppler-echocardiographic indices of diastolic function in heart failure admissions with preserved left ventricular systolic function.

Many patients admitted to hospital with heart failure have preserved left ventricular (LV) systolic function. The incidence of isolated diastolic dysfunction as a cause of such admission remains unclear. We aimed to examine diastolic function in unselected admissions from the community with heart failure using the European Study Group on Diastolic Heart Failure (ESGDHF) Doppler-echocardiographic indices of diastolic dysfunction.

Heart failure management: multidisciplinary care has intrinsic benefit above the optimization of medical care.

Purpose: This work addresses the unanswered question of whether multidisciplinary care (MDC) of heart failure (HF) can reduce readmissions when optimal medical care is applied in both intervention and control groups.

Methods: In a randomized, controlled study, 98 patients (mean age, 70.8 +/- 10.