If you have heart failure you are not alone. Over five million Americans are living with heart failure today. In fact, heart failure is the only cardiovascular disease (disease affecting the heart and/or the body’s blood vessels) that is rising in incidence. 550,000 new cases of heart failure are diagnosed each year. Heart failure is the leading cause of hospitalization – over 1 million hospitalizations – in patients over 65 years of age. In 2006, the United States healthcare system spent an estimated $29.6 billion to treat heart failure.

The good news is that you often CAN manage heart failure symptoms to lead a healthy and active life, and to stay out of the hospital. The goal of this Web site and the Fight Against Heart Failure^SM program is to give you tips and tools to help you take control of your heart failure.

This section will help you learn more about heart failure, and why it’s so important to pay attention to your symptoms every day.

It is important for everyone to know the risk factors that, over time, can weaken the heart and lead to heart failure. If people lead a healthy, active life from a young age, they often can avoid these risk factors – like coronary artery disease. And this means they can often prevent getting heart failure, too.