HEART FAILURE

M. Packer, C.M. O'Connor, J.K. Ghali, M.L. Pressler, P.E. Carson, R.N. Belkin, A.B. Miller, G.W. Neuberg, D. Frid, J.H. Wertheimer, A.B. Cropp, D.L. DeMets, "Effect of amlodipine on morbidity and mortality in severe chronic heart failure," New England Journal of Medicine, 335:1107-14, 1996. (Cited in more than 155 papers since publication)

Comments by Christopher Michael O'Connor, associate director of the Duke Clinical Research Institute, Durham, N.C.

Medical advances have allowed us to live longer and granted a higher quality of life, but they can also lead to other problems. While heart disease in general is on the decline, heart failure--or a buildup of fluid in the lungs due to a weakening heart--is actually becoming more common.

Patients usually develop heart failure in one of two ways: as a result of hypertension, or as a result of a heart attack. "We've made great strides in reduction of risk factors...