Muscle wasting in heart failure: An overview.

Patients with heart failure are frequently limited in their exercise capacity. Although this clinical phenomenon is mostly attributed to the failing myocardium, the effects of skeletal muscle wasting should not be underestimated. Muscle wasting may present in the form of loss of muscle mass and function, termed sarcopenia in healthy aging, or in the form of cachexia. Only cachexia is associated with loss of body weight. The mechanisms involved embrace an anabolic-/catabolic imbalance with increased degradation of myofibrils and myocyte apoptosis. Clinical effects include reduced muscle mass, strength and consequently reduced exercise capacity. This article describes the terminology, molecular pathways, prevalence, clinical implications and possible treatment approaches to muscle wasting in patients with heart failure. This article is part of a Directed Issue entitled: Molecular basis of muscle wasting.