According to one study, the reported prevalence among those aged 65-74 years is one in 35, and among the over-85s one in seven.
* Professor Jeroen Bax, European Society of Cardiology Congress Programme Committee Chair 2006-2008, has spoken of "an exponential growth in patients presenting heart failure".
* The American Heart Association recently described the prevention of heart failure as "an urgent public health need".
Despite the increasing prevalence and the urgency, there are huge challenges in the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of heart failure. These were all addressed at Heart Failure 2008 Congress, this year's annual meeting of the Heart Failure Association of the European Society of Cardiology, which took place in Milan from 14-17 June.
According to Professor Kenneth Dickstein, President of the Heart Failure Association of the ESC, heart failure comprises "an enormous population, but we have a hard time identifying that population". It was the mission of Heart Failure 2008 Congress to improve awareness of the condition, improve its diagnosis in primary care, and thereby improve the quality of life for those affected and reduce hospital admissions.
Read the complete Press Release here
"Everything you wanted to Know about Heart Failure but were afraid to ask ...." by Prof. M Komajda and Prof. M. Metra at the ESC 2008 Congress in Munich. Ask your question here
The Heart Failure 2008 Congress is accredited by the European Board for Accreditation in Cardiology (EBAC) for 15 hours of external CME credits.
Each participant should claim only those hours of credit spent on an educational activity. EBAC works in co-operation with the European Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (EACCME), which is an institution of the European Union of Medical Specialists (UEMS).
EBAC certificates will be available at the Registration Desk as from Monday 16 June in the afternoon.