Heart failure is a complex clinical syndrome caused by a variety of etiologies: myocardial, valvular, and congenital. While the majority of its signs and symptoms are because of myocardial disease, one should not forget the less common cases which need the surgeon's intervention. In addition, the fast development of cardiac devices has set a platform for potential recovery of patients previously considered as end-stage heart failure. I strongly recommend this excellent and comprehensive book edited by Professor Michael Henein as a manual and guide for understanding and managing patients with heart failure. Donald Ross v Preface Over the years we have made considerable progress in the diagnosis and management of the syndrome of heart failure, the end-stage of most cardiac diseases. A Pharaonic diag- sis by means of observation of the signs of fuid retention has now been replaced by n- invasive cardiac function assessment, while tests for myocardial pathology and the assessment of intra-cardiac pressures aid in the diagnosis.
