[Diabetes mellitus and chronic heart failure].

Diabetes mellitus is one of the significant risk factors for many cardiovascular diseases. Diabetes mellitus is 3-4 times more frequent in patients with heart failure compared to patients without heart failure. Prognosis of patients with heart failure and diabetes mellitus is worse than prognosis of non-diabetic patients with the same left ventricular dysfunction. The term diabetic cardiomyopathy refers to a relation between diabetes mellitus and heart disease, but it probably isn't a separate morphology unit. In treatment of patients with diabetes mellitus general rules apply to heart failure management. The effect of ACE inhibitors was in majority of studies stronger in diabetics than in non-diabetics, the effect of beta blockers was comparable or smaller. Treatment is based on good compensation of metabolic parameters, blood pressure, titration of ACE inhibitors into recommended doses, and an optimal dose of a beta blocker. Type II diabetics with heart failure will, due to decreased resorption and metabolism, need insulin more often than diabetics without heart failure.