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The systole and the diastole make up the two phases of a complete cardiac cycle. During systole, the ventricles contract and pump blood out of the heart and into the arteries. During diastole, the ventricles relax, allowing blood to flow inside and refill them.

Certain medical conditions can cause the ventricles to lose a part of their elasticity and become stiff. The stiffened ventricles cannot relax completely during the diastolic phase and therefore cannot fill up completely. This causes blood to back up in the lungs and other organs and the condition is known as diastolic heart failure or diastolic dysfunction.

Some of the common causes of diastolic heart failure include:

• Hypertension or high blood pressure
• Coronary heart disease
• Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy
• Aortic stenosis
• Diabetes
• Obesity

Symptoms

Similar to the symptoms of any kind of heart failure, diastolic heart failure symptoms are:

• Breathlessness
• Coughing
• Rapid breathing
• Chest pain
• Dizziness, fainting spells
• Palpitations
• Fatigue, lethargy

Unlike other types of heart failure, people with diastolic heart failure find it difficult to breathe normally. Sudden episodes known as 'flush pulmonary edema' usually occurs when other medical conditions such as atrial fibrillation produce sudden lung congestion.

The prognosis for people with diastolic heart failure is better than that of patients with systolic dysfunction and traditional heart failure, provided the condition is diagnosed and treated in time. Recent evidence suggests that people with diastolic heart failure who do not exhibit any of the symptoms of heart failure have a higher mortality than normal.

Treatment for diastolic heart failure usually involves diagnosis and treatment of the underlying cause.

• Hypertension: People with diastolic heart failure are frequently hypertensive. Treating blood pressure and keeping it within the optimal range is essential and you may be prescribed different drugs to keep your blood pressure within range.
• Coronary heart disease (CHD): Since undiagnosed coronary heart disease is often a common cause of diastolic dysfunction, patients should be carefully screened and treated for it. Treatment can involve the use of drugs such as statins to reduce cholesterol levels and surgery. Coronary bypass surgery or angioplasty are other forms of treatment that may be used.
• Obesity: Diet and exercise are two forms of therapy that all heart patients are advised to undergo. Keeping your weight within prescribed limits will help lower the burden on your heart and can prevent diastolic dysfunction from worsening. Aerobic exercise has been found to be especially beneficial to those with diastolic heart failure.
• Diabetes: Keeping sugar levels within their normal range is an essential part of treatment for people with both conditions.
• Diuretics: These drugs help to reduce excess sodium and water from the body and thereby lessen the symptoms of pulmonary congestion.
• Calcium channel blocker drugs: These may help to reduce ventricular stiffness. There are things that aren't

References

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10728407