title: Congestive heart failure and genomic medicine: a look into the 21st century.
abstract: Congestive heart failure (CHF) has emerged as one of the leading cardiovascular disorders in developed countries, as indicated by the prevalence of the disease; the incidence of hospitalization, morbidity, and mortality; and its global economic burden. Furthermore, it is expected that heart failure and other cardiovascular disorders will become the major disease burdens in developing countries by the year 2020. It is well established that pharmacological therapy of CHF, although still not optimum, improves patient quality of life and reduces morbidity and mortality. However, CHF remains a relentlessly progressive disease. In this brief review an attempt is made to explore the contemporary, state-of-the-art pharmacological approach to the treatment of heart failure, the unmet medical need that still remains, and the potential impact of genomic medicine on the treatment of heart failure in the 21st century.
authors.forename: G Z
authors.initials: GZ
authors.lastname: Feuerstein
authors.forename: R R
authors.initials: RR
authors.lastname: Ruffolo
mesh_terms: D015316:Genetic Therapy; D006333:Heart Failure / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000628:therapy*; D006801:Humans