Rehabilitation Program in Heart Failure With Preserved Ejection Fraction

Inclusion Criteria

• •Patients \>=21 years of age willing and able to sign consent forms
• •Hospitalization for acute heart failure (AHF) in one of the internal medicine departments participating in the study
• •AHF as the primary diagnosis as defined by:
• •* (I) The presence of pulmonary congestion or edema on chest radiography OR
• •* (II) Evidence of fluid retention (pedal edema, pleural effusion, ascites) not otherwise explained by other conditions (i.e. malignancy, nephrotic syndrome, liver cirrhosis, severe hypo-albuminemia, etc) AND
• •* (III) Echocardiography demonstrating the presence of preserved systolic function
• •* In cases where diagnosis is unclear BNP testing (with a cutoff value of \>300 ng/dl) will be used.
• •* If there is clinical suspicion of pulmonary disease investigators are encouraged to perform pulmonary function tests after the patient condition is stabilized.
• •Preserved systolic function as determined by in-hospital or recent (within 3 months) echocardiographic examination according to ESC guidelines and in the absence of hemodynamic significant valvular disease.
• •Stable clinical condition prior to discharge permitting the initiation of an exercise training program