Heart failure (HF) therapies have improved patient outcome over the last decades, however those with worsening symptoms and/or signs of HF still have a poor prognosis [1,2]. Both the etiology of HF and the factors leading to its decompensation may influence outcomes and drug response [3–7]. Previous studies have shown that patients with HF of an ischemic etiology have worse prognosis than those with non-ischemic etiology [8,9], and patients with worsening HF precipitated by infection or worsening renal function had worse prognosis than those with worsening HF precipitated by hypertension or noncompliance [7,10,11].
