title: Diagnostic and therapeutic challenges in patients with coexistent chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and chronic heart failure.
abstract: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and heart failure (CHF) are common conditions. The prevalence of COPD ranges from 20% to 30% in patients with CHF. The diagnosis of CHF can remain unsuspected in patients with COPD, because shortness of breath is attributed to COPD. Measurement of plasma B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP) levels helps to uncover unsuspected CHF in patients with COPD and clinical deterioration. Noninvasive assessment of cardiac function may be preferable to BNP to uncover unsuspected left ventricular (LV) systolic dysfunction in patients with stable COPD. Patients with COPD or CHF develop skeletal muscle alterations that are strikingly similar. Functional intolerance correlates with severity of skeletal muscle alterations but not with severity of pulmonary or cardiac impairment in COPD and CHF, respectively. Improvement of pulmonary or cardiac function does not translate into relief of functional intolerance in patients with COPD or CHF unless skeletal muscle alterations concomitantly regress. The mechanisms responsible for skeletal muscle alterations are incompletely understood in COPD and in CHF. Disuse and low-level systemic inflammation leading to protein synthesis/degradation imbalance are likely to contribute. The presence of COPD impacts on the treatment of CHF, as COPD is still viewed as a contraindication to beta-blockade. Therefore, COPD often deprives patients with CHF due to LV systolic dysfunction of the most beneficial pharmacologic intervention. A large body of data indicates that patients with COPD tolerate well selective beta-blockade that should not be denied to CHF patients with concomitant COPD.
authors.affiliation: Division of Cardiology, Tulane University, New Orleans, Louisiana 70112-2699, USA. lejemtel@tulane.edu
authors.forename: Thierry H
authors.initials: TH
authors.lastname: Le Jemtel
authors.forename: Margherita
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Padeletti
authors.forename: Sanja
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Jelic
mesh_terms: D018674:Adrenergic Antagonists / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D000317:Adrenergic alpha-Antagonists / Q000627:therapeutic use; D000319:Adrenergic beta-Antagonists / Q000627:therapeutic use; D000368:Aged; D000806:Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme Inhibitors / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D002908:Chronic Disease; D015897:Comorbidity; D004359:Drug Therapy, Combination; D004452:Echocardiography; D005260:Female; D006333:Heart Failure / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000453:epidemiology*; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011379:Prognosis; D029424:Pulmonary Disease, Chronic Obstructive / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000453:epidemiology*; D012129:Respiratory Function Tests; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D013318:Stroke Volume; D015996:Survival Rate; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D018674:Adrenergic Antagonists; D000317:Adrenergic alpha-Antagonists; D000319:Adrenergic beta-Antagonists; D000806:Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme Inhibitors