Clinical perspectives and evidence of diastolic stress test in heart failure with preserved ejection fraction

The diagnosis of heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFPEF) remains on the basis of echocardiographic analyses at rest. However, some patients with HFPEF have symptoms such as dyspnea only during exercise. Accordingly, echocardiographic analyses at rest could be insufficiently sensitive to identify these patients. In line, recent studies demonstrated that in some patients with HFPEF left ventricular diastolic abnormalities occur only during exercise. This review discusses and analyzes the clinical relevance and evidence of using diastolic stress test echocardiography in patients with HFPEF.