title: Management of Patients Admitted with Acute Decompensated Heart Failure.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Hospital admission for the treatment of acute decompensated heart failure is an unfortunate certainty in the vast majority of patients with heart failure. Regardless of the etiology, inpatient treatment for acute decompensated heart failure portends a worsening prognosis.
  
  
  METHODS
  This review identifies patients with heart failure who need inpatient therapy and provides an overview of recommended therapies and management of these patients in the hospital setting.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Inpatient therapy for patients with acute decompensated heart failure should be directed at decongestion and symptom improvement. Clinicians should also treat possible precipitating events, identify comorbid conditions that may exacerbate heart failure, evaluate and update current guideline-directed medical therapy, and perform risk stratification for all patients. Finally, efforts should be made to educate patients about the importance of restricting salt and fluid, monitoring daily weights, and adhering to a graded exercise program.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Early discharge follow-up and continued optimization of guideline-directed medical therapy are key to preventing future heart failure readmissions.
authors.affiliation: Section of Cardiomyopathy and Heart Transplantation, John Ochsner Heart and Vascular Institute, Ochsner Clinic Foundation, New Orleans, LA ; The University of Queensland School of Medicine, Ochsner Clinical School, New Orleans, LA.
authors.forename: Selim R
authors.initials: SR
authors.lastname: Krim
authors.affiliation: Section of Cardiomyopathy and Heart Transplantation, John Ochsner Heart and Vascular Institute, Ochsner Clinic Foundation, New Orleans, LA ; The University of Queensland School of Medicine, Ochsner Clinical School, New Orleans, LA.
authors.forename: Patrick T
authors.initials: PT
authors.lastname: Campbell
authors.affiliation: Section of Cardiomyopathy and Heart Transplantation, John Ochsner Heart and Vascular Institute, Ochsner Clinic Foundation, New Orleans, LA.
authors.forename: Sapna
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Desai
authors.affiliation: Section of Cardiomyopathy and Heart Transplantation, John Ochsner Heart and Vascular Institute, Ochsner Clinic Foundation, New Orleans, LA.
authors.forename: Stacy
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Mandras
authors.affiliation: Section of Cardiomyopathy and Heart Transplantation, John Ochsner Heart and Vascular Institute, Ochsner Clinic Foundation, New Orleans, LA.
authors.forename: Hamang
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Patel
authors.affiliation: Section of Cardiomyopathy and Heart Transplantation, John Ochsner Heart and Vascular Institute, Ochsner Clinic Foundation, New Orleans, LA.
authors.forename: Clement
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Eiswirth
authors.affiliation: Section of Cardiomyopathy and Heart Transplantation, John Ochsner Heart and Vascular Institute, Ochsner Clinic Foundation, New Orleans, LA ; The University of Queensland School of Medicine, Ochsner Clinical School, New Orleans, LA.
authors.forename: Hector O
authors.initials: HO
authors.lastname: Ventura
keywords: Disease management; heart failure; inpatients