Cardiac System Bioenergetics In Heart Failure

Cardiac output is related to the external work of the heart, and the oxygen consumption is related to the energy expended by the heart.The basic principles of thermodynamics can be applied to the heart to determine the work and the energy expenditure in pumping blood.

Heart failure (HF) is a syndrome resulting from the inability of the cardiac pump to meet the energy requirements of the body. Despite intensive work, the pathogenesis of the cardiac intracellular abnormalities that result from HF remains incompletely understood. Factors that lead to abnormal contraction and relaxation in the failing heart include metabolic pathway abnormalities that result in decreased energy production, energy transfer and energy utilization.