[Diagnosis and therapy of chronic heart failure].

Incidence and prevalence of chronic heart failure are continuously increasing. Today, heart failure of different etiologies represents the most frequent cause of death in industrialized countries. Improvements in heart failure diagnosis and treatment have decreased lethality. In this context, a valid diagnosis, causative therapy of treatable heart failure etiologies, and efficient pharmacological as well as non-pharmacological management strategies are of equal importance. The principal goals of therapy are prevention, maintenance or even improvement of quality of life and the decrease of heart-failure-related morbidity and mortality.