RT Book, Section A1 Huffman, Lynn C. A1 Bolling, Steven F. A2 Cohn, Lawrence H. SR Print(0) ID 55931088 T1 Chapter 68. Nontransplant Surgical Options for Heart Failure T2 Cardiac Surgery in the Adult, 4e YR 2012 FD 2012 PB The McGraw-Hill Companies PP New York, NY SN 978-0-07-163310-9 LK accesssurgery.mhmedical.com/content.aspx?aid=55931088 RD 2024/11/10 AB Congestive heart failure (CHF) has become a major worldwide public health problem. In our ever-aging population, medical advances that have extended our average life expectancy have also left more people living with chronic cardiac disease than ever before. More than 20 million people are affected worldwide. In the United States the estimated 2006 prevalence of heart failure in adults age 20 and older is 5.8 million yet less than 3000 are offered transplantation because of limitations of age, comorbid conditions, and donor availability. Despite the significant improvements with medical management hospital discharges for heart failure rose from 877,000 in 1996 to 1,106,000 in 2006 and mortality in the first year is one in five. CHF patients are repeatedly readmitted for inpatient care and the vast majority will die within 3 years of diagnosis.1