S10 Heart Failure Flashcards
What is heart failure?
The inability of the heart to meet the demands (deliver a blood volume that allows the body tissues to function as required) of the body.
A clinical syndrome of reduced CO, tissue hypoperfusion, increased pulmonary pressures and tissue congestion
What is a syndrome?
A collection of signs and symptoms
What 3 things allow the heart to work as an effective pump?
- one way valves
- the chamber size
- functioning muscle
Conditions that impair what 3 things could lead to impairment of cardiac function?
- one way valves
- the chamber size
- functioning muscle
What is the most common cause of heart failure?
Ischaemic heart disease
Apart from ischaemic heart disease, what are some other causes of heart failure?
- hypertension
- aortic stenosis
- cardiomyopathies
- arrhythmias
- valvular/myocardial structural diseases
- pericardial diseases
What is the rarest cause of heart failure?
Highly increased demand on CO due to sepsis, severe anaemia or thyrotoxicosis - high output heart failure
Why does myocardial dysfunction occur with ischaemic heart disease?
Dysfunction occurs through fibrosis and remodelling of the muscle
How does hypertension result in heart failure?
There’s increased afterload on the ventricles and increased risk of atherosclerosis (can lead to IHD)
How does aortic stenosis result in heart failure?
There’s increased afterload on the L ventricle
How does cardiomyopathies result in heart failure?
Muscles could be hypertrophic/dilated - can lose elasticity - harder to pump effectively and the walls are thickened - issue with filling
What is the stroke volume?
The volume of blood ejected by a ventricle in a single beat
What is the CO?
The volume delivered to tissues, etc
How do you calculate ejection fraction (EF)?
SV/EDV x 100
SV = EDV - ESV
What factors influence stroke volume?
Increase SV: * preload * myocardial contractility Decrease SV: * afterload
What is Frank-Starling’s Law?
The more the ventricles are filled/stretched during diastole, the greater volume (SV) ejected during systole - the greater the cardiac myocytes are stretched, the greater their force of contraction.
However does reach a point when the cells are overstretched and then SV decreases.
This is an intrinsic mechanism
How does the influence of the sympathetic nervous system effect the Frank-Starling curves? Why?
Curve is shifted upwards and to the left
Positive inotropic effect - the contractility of the heart increases with increased sympathetic activity - there’s a greater CO for a given EDP
Why is CO reduced in heart failure?
- there’s a reduced preload (EDV)
- there’s reduced myocardial contractility
- there’s an increase afterload
These all reduce SV, hence CO is reduced
What can cause increased afterload in the L side of heart?
Aortic stenosis or chronic severe hypertension
What is the most common reason for reduced preload?
Due to a problem with the size of the chamber, rather than a problem with venous return
What can caused reduce filling of the heart?
- the ventricular chambers are too stiff/aren’t relaxing enough
- ventricular hypertrophy
What can caused reduce contractility of the heart?
- thin/fibrosed muscle walls
- overstretches sarcomeres - enlarged chambers
- abnormal/uncoordinated myocardial contraction
What is heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF)?
What is heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HRpEF)?
Systolic dysfunction - contractility problem - most common
Diastolic dysfunction - filling problem
What is a normal ejection fraction percentage?
Normal is 50% or above
Typical is 60% or above