Cardiac Failure: Definition, Causes, Types, Symptoms, Diagnosis, Treatment, Prognosis, and Prevention Cardiac Failure: Definition, Causes, Types, Symptoms, Diagnosis, Treatment, Prognosis, and Prevention Cardiac failure, also called heart failure, is a clinical syndrome in which the heart cannot pump blood effectively enough to meet the body's needs or can do so only at the cost of increased filling pressures. It is a major cause of illness and death worldwide and requires long-term management. [web:2][web:7][web:10] Image: Symptoms of heart failure. [image:11] Important: Heart failure is not the same as cardiac arrest. In heart failure, the heart is still beating, but it is not pumping well enough. [web:7] Definition Heart failure is a complex syndrome caused by structural or functional impairment of ventricular filling or ejection of blood. It may affect the left ventricle, right ventricle, or both. [web:1...