Article

Heart Failure

Heart Failure is a life threatening disease, affecting approximately 64.34 million people worldwide.1
  • 1.5 billion people are at risk of developing Heart Failure
  • Heart Failure is a global pandemic affecting 64.34 million patients worldwide and is increasing in prevalence1


The outlook for such patients is poor, with survival rates worse than those for bowel, breast or prostate cancer. Furthermore, heart failure places great stresses on patients, caregivers and healthcare systems. Despite the treatments available, hospitalisation and mortality rates remain high.2

Unmet needs in HF patient management
Screening, improved diagnosis and better disease monitoring are needed4

Heart failure - Patient journey

1. Screening
 

  • Type 2 Diabetes (T2D) and Atrial Fibrillation patients at high risk

2. Acute Heart failure diagnosis

  • Patients missed or referred too late due to non HF specific symptoms

3. Chronic Heart failure diagnosis

  • Both NPs and echo required to diagnose in combination with unique clinical expertise

4. Risk stratification
 

  • Availability of risk scores and biomarkers limited to specialised care

5. Therapy selection
 

  • Effective therapies available when started early

6. Monitoring & follow up

  • Tracking HF disease progression is key to reduce readmissions

Biomarkers can play a critical role in improving diagnosis and disease management.

How is heart failure diagnosed?

 

As a first step to diagnosis, an examination and the patient’s medical history are assessed. Then three further tests and procedures should be performed.2,3 These are an electrocardiogram (ECG), a biomarker (blood test) for natriuretic peptides, and echocardiography to determine any structural and functional impairment of the heart (changes in heartbeat rhythm, pumping capacity, wall stress and wall thickness). Interpretation of the results provided by those tests helps in the confirmation or exclusion of the diagnosis of heart failure.

 

Biomarkers - a characteristic that is objectively measured and evaluated as an indicator of normal biological processes, pathogenic processes, or pharmacologic responses to a therapeutic intervention, in blood.5

Natriuretic peptides - Natriuretic peptides are hormones that are made by the heart when its wall is stretched.

NT-proBNP - N-terminal pro b-type natriuretic peptides part of the natriuretic peptides family.

Learn more about Cardiac Biomarker Solutions from Roche

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* NPs: Natriuretic Peptides

References

 

  1. Gobal Health Metrics, The lancet Volume 392, Issue 10159, P1789-1858, 2018
  2. Ponikowski et. al. (2014). ESC Heart Fail. :4-25. doi: 10.1002/ehf2.12005.
  3. Yancy et. al. (2013). Circulation, 128(16): 1810-52,11.
  4. Lesyuk et al. BMC Cardiovasc. Disord. 2018(1): 74
  5. Hildebrandt et al. (2010). Eur Heart J. 31, 1881-1889