Principles of Critical Care > Part III. Cardiovascular Disorders > Chapter 23. Diagnostic and Management Strategies for Acute Heart Failure in the Intensive Care Unit Gerasimos S. Filippatos,  George Baltopoulos,  Elias Karambatsos,  Markku S. Nieminen

Key Points

"Acute heart failure (AHF) is the primary or an underlying diagnosis in many patients admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU), but its exact incidence is unknown. The cause of heart failure (HF) in 60% to 70% of hospitalized patients is ischemic heart disease,^1–3 but many diagnoses, including arrhythmias, idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathy, systemic or pulmonary hypertension, congenital and valvular heart disease, or myocarditis, should be considered (see Chap. 24). HF is complicated by diabetes in 27% of hospitalized patients, renal dysfunction in 17%, and respiratory disease in 32%, and the vast majority of individuals hospitalized for AHF are older than 70 years.³..."