This issue of Heart Failure Clinics--edited by Dr. Eduardo Bossone--will cover The Right Heart Pulmonary Circulation Unit. Topics include Pathophysiology, Increased Systemic versus Increased Pulmonary Pressures, Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension, Right Heart Pulmonary Circulation Unit in Connective Tissue Disease, Right Heart Pulmonary Circulation Unit in Congenital Heart Diseases, Pulmonary Hypertension and Heart Failure, Right Heart Pulmonary Circulation Unit in Cardiomyopathies and Storage Diseases, Pulmonary Hypertension, Right Heart Pulmonary Circulation Unit at High Altitude, Chronic Thromboembolic Pulmonary Hypertension, Combining Invasive and Non-Invasive Evaluation for the Diagnosis of Pulmonary Hypertension, Imaging the Right Heart Pulmonary Circulation Unit: The Role of Ultrasound, Imaging the Right Heart Pulmonary Circulation Unit: The Role of CT and MRI, Biomarkers in Pulmonary Hypertension, Pulmonary Hypertension Related to Diffuse Parenchymal Lung Disease, Chronic Right Heart Failure, Exercise Training and Rehabilitation in Pulmonary Hypertension, and Right Heart Circulation Unit and Left Heart Valvular Diseases.

For many years, there has been a great deal of work done on chronic congestive heart failure while acute heart failure has been considered a difficult to handle and hopeless syndrome. However, in recent years acute heart failure has become a growing area of study and this is the first book to cover extensively the diagnosis and management of this complex condition. The book reflects the considerable amounts of new data reported and many new concepts which have been proposed in the last 3-4 years looking at the epidemiology, diagnostic and treatment of acute heart failure.

The heart and lung are intricately linked. When the heart is affected by disease, the lungs will often show some related pathological or clinical conditions and vice versa. Pulmonary heart disease is by definition a condition when the lungs cause the heart to fail. The left ventricle in combination with the other structures in the “left heart” pumps blood throughout the body. The right ventricle (and structures of the “right heart”) pumps blood to the lungs where it is oxygenated and returned to the left heart for distribution. In normal circumstances, the right heart pumps blood into the lungs without any resistance. The lungs usually have minimal pressure and the right heart easily pumps blood through. However when there is lung disease present, like emphysema, chronic obstructive lung disease (COPD) or pulmonary hypertension- the small blood vessels become very stiff and rigid. The right ventricle is no longer able to push blood into the lungs and eventually fails. This is known as pulmonary heart disease. Pulmonary heart disease is also known as right heart failure or cor pulmonale. The chief cause of right heart failure is the increase in blood pressure in the lungs (pulmonary artery).

This issue of Heart Failure Clinics, guest edited by Dr. Subha V. Raman, will cover key topics in Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance. This issue is one of four issues selected each year by our series consulting editor, Dr. Eduardo Bossone. Topics discussed in this issue will include: When to use CMR for patients with heart failure; Quantifying cardiac dysfunction with CMR; CMR in heritable cardiomyopathies; CMR in ischemic cardiomyopathy; CMR in right heart and pulmonary circulation disorders; CMR of myocardial fibrosis, edema, and infiltrates in heart failure; Magnetic resonance-based characterization of myocardial architecture; CMR in valvular heart disease-related heart failure; Pericardial disease with CMR; CMR's central role in chemotherapy-induced cardiotoxicity; Intracardiac and vascular hemodynamics with CMR in heart failure; Myocardial energetics with CMR; CMR in congenital heart disease: focus on heart failure; and Machine learning in CMR applied to heart failure.

In this issue of Heart Failure Clinics, guest editors Drs. Alberto M. Marra, Pietro Ameri, and Alexander E. Sherman bring their considerable expertise to Challenges in Pulmonary Hypertension. Top experts in the field cover key topics such as gender aspects in pulmonary hypertension; PAH in connective tissue diseases beyond systemic sclerosis; genetic background of high altitude pulmonary edema; oxygen therapy in pulmonary vascular disease; and more. - Contains 13 relevant, practice-oriented topics including rare forms of pulmonary hypertension; management of SARS-CoV-2 infection and COVID-19 in patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension; anabolic deficiency in pulmonary arterial hypertension; anticoagulation in pulmonary hypertension; and more. - Provides in-depth clinical reviews on challenges in pulmonary hypertension, offering actionable insights for clinical practice. - Presents the latest information on this timely, focused topic under the leadership of experienced editors in the field. Authors synthesize and distill the latest research and practice guidelines to create clinically significant, topic-based reviews.

This issue of Heart Failure Clinics, guest edited by Mani A. Vannan, will focus on Imaging the Failing Heart. Topics include, but are not limited to, The Healthcare Burden of Heart Failure; Nomenclature, Classification, Stages of Heart Failure; Left Ventricular Size and Ejection Fraction; Left Ventricular Wall Thickness and Mass; Myocardial Strain and Dyschrony; Myocardial Scar and Fibrosis; Left Atrial size and Function; Right Ventricular Size and Function; Mitral and Tricuspid Regurgitation; Diastolic Function; Intraventricular Flow; Resting and Exercise Doppler Hemodynamics; Ultrasound of the Lung; Role of Imaging in Specific Cardiomyopathies; and Interventional Imaging in Heart Failure.

Pulmonary hypertension (PH) is increased pressure in the pulmonary arteries, which carry blood from the heart to the lungs to pick up oxygen. The changes resulting from PH make it difficult for the heart to push blood through the pulmonary arteries, causing the heart to become weak and possibly to develop failure. Understanding the causes and treatment of PH can help heart failure specialists prevent heart failure due to PH.