Congestive heart failure or congestive heart failure (CHF) is a condition in which heart function as a pump to deliver oxygen rich blood to the body is not sufficient to meet the needs of the body. Congestive heart failure can be caused by:
1. Diseases that weaken the heart muscles
2. Diseases that cause the stiffness of the heart muscles
3. Diseases that increase oxygen demands by body tissues outside the heart’s ability to give
The heart has two atria or veranda (right atrium and left atrium) that form the heart of the upper rooms, and two ventricles, or chambers (left ventricle and right ventricle), which form the bottom of the ventricle. Ventricle is a muscular rooms that pump blood when the muscles contracted (contraction of the muscles of the ventricle is called systole).
Many diseases that can disturb the pumping process of the ventricles. For example, the muscles of the ventricles can be weakened by heart attacks or infections (myocarditis). Reduced pumping ability of the ventricles which caused by the weakening of muscles is called systolic dysfunction. After each contraction the ventricle (systole) ventricle muscles needs to relax in order to allow blood from the atria to fill the ventricles. Relaxation of the ventricles is called diastole.
