World Heart Day 2023: Preventing Heart Failure

The main function of the heart is to pump oxygenated (purified) blood into the arteries

- Kamalini Biswas

It does so after receiving deoxygenated (impure) blood from the body through the veins. This cardiac output during each cycle of heart contraction is dependent on the venous return. Normally, about 60-65% of the blood that is returned to the heart is pumped out during a cardiac cycle. This is known as left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF), which is measured by ultrasound of the heart. This is known as echocardiogram, or simply an "Echo". "It's a noninvasive procedure," states Dr Siddharth Sarangi. He is a cardiac surgeon affiliated with OSF Healthcare St Francis Medical Center in Peoria, Illinois, USA and Clinical Assistant Professor at the Department of Surgery at University of Illinois College of Medicine.

The heart is made up of muscle, which generates force to act as a pump. Two conditions lead to pump failure in the heart. First, if the muscles contract inefficiently, it leads to systolic heart failure. Systole represents the contraction cycle of the heart. The systolic heart failure is characterized by a low LVEF. In contrast to systolic heart failure, heart failure can also occur with an intact (preserved) ejection fraction. "This happens due to dysfunction in diastole when the heart is relaxing," says Dr Sarangi. Diastolic heart failure occurs when the heart becomes stiff, which leads to impaired filling of the heart resulting in inadequate venous return.