NR603_week3_quiz study guide

NR603_week3_quiz study guide Heart Failure Heart failure (HF) is a complex syndrome characterized by the inability of the heart to meet the body's metabolic demands; it is a clinical diagnosis. It results from any structural or functional cardiac disorder that impairs the ventricle's ability to fill or to eject blood properly. Etiology The etiology of HF can be divided into the following three broad categories: 1. Anatomic or functional abnormalities of the coronary vessels, myocardium, or cardiac valves, of either sudden or gradual onset 2. Neurohormonal overexpression that causes activation of the adrenergic nervous system and renin-angiotensin system 3. Extracardiac factors that cause excessive demand on the cardiovascular system The most common diseases associated with HF are coronary artery disease, hypertension, and dilated cardiomyopathies Cardiomyopathy, the most common cause of HF, is a disease process of the myocardium that affects the heart's pumping ability. Classification of heart muscle disease is complex; an expert panel defined cardiomyopathies as “a heterogeneous group of diseases of the myocardium associated with mechanical and/or electrical dysfunction that usually (but not invariably) exhibit inappropriate ventricular hypertrophy or dilatation and are due to a variety of causes that frequently are genetic. Cardiomyopathies either are confined to the heart or are part of generalized systemic disorders, often leading to cardiovascular death or progressive heart failure–related disability.” 5 Cardiomyopathies have been divided into two major groups: 1. Primary (including genetic, nongenetic, and acquired cardiomyopathies)— confined to the heart muscle 2. Secondary—heart muscle involvement as part of a general or systemic disease or disorder Risk Factors. Many individuals with HF have antecedent hypertension or myocardial infarction (MI). Other risk factors include coronary artery disease, diabetes, renal disease,