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Chronic heart failure diagnosis: HFpEF

Heart failure (HF) with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) is a very common clinical syndrome that is often misdiagnosed or overlooked due to diagnostic challenges with the lack of a specific imaging test or biomarker to make a conclusive diagnosis. Unlike HF with reduced ejection fraction, neither a reduced ejection fraction nor a dilated left ventricle is available to easily make the diagnosis of HFpEF. Furthermore, while echocardiographic evidence of diastolic dysfunction is common in patients with HFpEF, it is not a universal phenomenon. Even natriuretic peptides, which are generally thought to have good negative predictive value for the diagnosis of HF, are frequently not elevated in HFpEF patients. Finally, the cardinal symptoms of HFpEF such as dyspnoea and exercise intolerance are non-specific and may be due to many of the co-morbidities present in patients in whom the HFpEF diagnosis is entertained. This chapter presents a step-wise approach utilizing a careful clinical history, physical examination, natriuretic peptide testing, and echocardiography, which can reliably provide appropriate information to rule in or rule out the HFpEF diagnosis in the majority of patients. If there is still a question about the diagnosis, or if initial general treatment measures for the HF syndrome do not result in clinical improvement, additional testing such as right heart catheterization or cardiopulmonary exercise testing can be performed to further confirm the diagnosis. With a systematic approach to the patient with dyspnoea, the accurate diagnosis of HFpEF can be made reliably so that these high-risk patients can be appropriately treated.