Characteristics of heart failure with a preserved ejection fraction in black South African patients.

Background: Heart failure with a preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) is common in the elderly (≥75 years) and associated with arterial stiffness. The mean age of HFpEF presentation is lower (40-55 years) in sub-Saharan Africa. No clinical study has been conducted on HFpEF in identifying and characterising this phenotype at a younger age, moreover in a South African black population where the risk of HFpEF is two times higher than in other ethnic groups.