Heart failure (HF) is a burden for the healthcare system. The incidence will increase significantly due to the aging of population, which is associated with multiple comorbidities. Anemia and iron deficiency are common in patients with HF, their etiology being often multifactorial. The screening for anemia and iron deficiency is recommended as soon as possible. There are often no targeted investigations, therefore a significant proportion of cases are underdiagnosed. The management of patients may focus on identifying and correcting the cause. Anemia can occur due to nutritional deficiencies, inflammation, renal failure, bone marrow dysfunction, neurohormonal activity, treatment and hemodilution. The appropriate therapy for the patients with anemia and HF will contribute to the improvement of life quality. The only recommended iron product is ferric carboxymalose administered by intravenous infusion. Under the appropriate treatment, the patients showed an increase in effort tolerance, with an improvement in symptomatology and a lower number of hospitalization days. The management of these cases is handled by a multidisciplinary team consisting of a general practitioner, a cardiologist and other specialists if the patient has other comorbidities. The role of the general practitioner is essential, as he can perform proper screening, prevention and management, developed by a multidisciplinary team, in order to reduce the cardiac morbidity and mortality.
Cost effectiveness of implementing ESC guidelines for treatment of iron deficiency in heart failure in the Nordic countries
