Endothelial dysfunction and heart failure: A review of the existing bibliography with emphasis on flow mediated dilation

Heart failure affects 1–2% of the population worldwide, and it is characterized by episodes of decompensation often requiring hospitalization. Although targeted treatment has reduced the prevalence of rehospitalizations to 30–50%, mortality rates remain high. A complex blend of structural and functional alterations accounts for the genesis and progression of heart failure, but the exact underlying pathophysiology remains poorly understood. The aim of this review is to summarize endothelial dysfunction and its role in the pathogenesis and progression of heart failure. Moreover, it sums up all the appropriate methods of assessing endothelial dysfunction emphasizing on flow-mediated dilation and introduces endothelium as a potential target for new therapeutic development and research in the wide spectrum of the syndrome called heart failure.