Myocardial Recovery in Patients with Chronic Heart Failure: Is It Real?

P>Patients with chronic advanced heart failure unloaded by left ventricular assist devices can show improvement in their myocardial function and some can show reverse remodeling to the extent that their myocardial function improves sufficiently for the device to be removed. Furthermore, recent data suggest that combining mechanical support with adjuvant drug therapy can increase the rate and proportion of recovery as well as its durability. This article will review the evidence for myocardial recovery in patients with chronic heart failure and whether it is a real phenomenon. (J Card Surg 2010;25:472-477).