Heart failure is associated with severe and disabling morbidity.

Breathlessness – dyspnoea - is one of the main symptoms of people with heart failure. Data from the Heart of England Screening study suggest that for around one third of people with heart failure, dyspnoea severely limits their physical activity, with breathlessness occurring either at rest, or upon minimal exertion, such as washing, dressing or walking from room to room.

The quality of life of people with heart failure is poor relative to that found in people with other chronic conditions. The Short-Form 36 (SF-36) questionnaire measures quality of life in eight areas of life, including physical, mental and social functioning. The Heart of England Screening Study used the SF-36 to measure quality of life in the general population and in people with heart failure.

SF-36 scores of people with heart failure are significantly lower than those found in the general population, with all eight areas of quality of life affected. Heart failure causes more severe impairment of physical functioning, social functioning and energy levels than chronic lung disease, arthritis, or other cardiac conditions such as angina. Overall, quality of life in people with heart failure declines markedly as the severity of the disease increases (For tables and figures on the impact of heart failure on quality of life see: Hobbs FDR et al. Impact of heart failure and left ventricular systolic dysfunction on quality of life: a cross sectional study comparing chronic cardiac and medical disorders and a representative adult population. European Journal of Heart Failure (in press)). 

The risk of co-morbidity is high in people with heart failure. People with heart failure are over three times as likely to have coronary heart disease and twice as likely to have diabetes as people without heart failure. At younger ages the risk of  co-morbidity is greatest.