Summary of current left(systolic) heart failure therapy
| 1. Treat underlying cause when possible, e.g. coronary artery disease and arterial hypertension |
| 2. General measurements, self-care management (avoid drugs that adversely affect the clinical status whenever possible) |
| 3. Diuretics (and moderate salt restriction) |
| 4. β-blockers (initiated in very low doses, followed by gradual increment) |
| 5. Angiotension-converting enzyme inhibitors (or angiotensin II receptor blockers, if intolerant for angiotension-converting enzyme inhibitors) |
| 6. Aldosterone antagonists (only when renal function is preserved and closely monitored) |
| 7. Exercise training (adjunct to optimal medical therapy) |
| 8. Implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (patients at high-risk for life-threatening arrhythmic disorders) |
| 9. Cardiac resynchronisation therapy (symptomatic heart failure patients despite optimal medical treatment, with signs of cardiac dyssynchrony): digoxin, hydrazaline/nitrate, left ventricle assist devices, heart transplantation |
The therapies marked in bold are not standard in current pulmonary arterial hypertension management. Data taken from [14, 15].