Following remarkable advances in medical care. the past decade has witnessed a significant improvement in the survival of patients with many different forms of heart disease. In the majority ofcases. however. the advances have been pa lIiative and not curative. The resu It has been the prod uction of an ever-increasing population of patients with heart disease. many of whom suffer from myocardial dysfunction and latent or overt heart failure. Heart failure is now a major cause of morbidity and mortality in cardiac patients. This book aims to combine in a single volume data relating to both pathophysiological mechanisms and the clinical management of the patient with heart failure. It includes chapters dealing with molecular. biochemical. and pathophysiological aspects of heart failure. ven­ tricular function and its assessment. and the clinical aspects of heart failure in different cardiac disorders, including ischemic heart disease. valvular heart disease. and the cardiomyopathies. There are sections on pharmacotherapy. the role of arrhythmias, exercise physiology. and neurohumoral mechanisms. The book also deals with newer inter­ ventional techniques. newer surgical procedures and some current problems relating to cardiac assist devices and heart and heart-lungs transplantation.