Journal of the American College of Cardiology Volume 74, Issue 6, 13 August 2019, Pages 804-813 The Present and Future JACC Review Topic of the Week Cardiovascular Aging and Heart Failure: JACC Review Topic of the Week Author links open overlay panelFilipposTriposkiadisMD, PhDaAndrewXanthopoulosMD, PhDaJavedButlerMD, MPH, MBAb https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jacc.2019.06.053Get rights and content Highlights • Cardiovascular aging leads to a progressive decline in structure and function. • Mitochondria are central controllers of the aging process. • Risk factors/comorbidities on top of cardiovascular aging promote HF. • Lifestyle modifications reduce risk and should be implemented from childhood. Abstract Heart failure (HF) is a clinical syndrome that usually develops in the elderly. Complex interactions of the cardiovascular aging process with risk factors (obesity, hypertension, and atherosclerosis), comorbidities (anemia, chronic kidney disease, diabetes, and so on), and disease modifiers (sex, genes, others) contribute to the development of HF phenotype and outcome. A conglomerate of cellular and molecular mechanisms underlies the effects of aging on cardiovascular function, the most important being excessive oxidative stress and chronic low-grade inflammation superimposed on the limited cardiac regeneration capacity. Notably, a sizeable percentage of elderly HF patients have cardiac amyloidosis, an HF precipitator. This review summarizes the current published data on the mechanisms of cardiovascular aging as they contribute to the development of HF phenotype and outcome.
