[Significance of vasodilator agents in the treatment of heart insufficiency].

Although the use of vasodilators acting on veins and arterioles to treat patients with refractory congestive heart failure has become increasingly widespread, essential problems relating to the clinical efficacy of long-term therapy remain to be solved. The pathophysiological bases of the most common forms of heart failure are discussed and the spectrum of available drugs and their principal mechanism of action are categorized. In addition, a possible conceptual approach to ambulatory oral vasodilator treatment is outlined.