ACE and heart disorder: Patients with left heart disease were treated according to the underlying cardiac disease and received surgical or interventional valve repair or coronary angioplasty including coronary stenting, as well as guideline-concordant heart failure therapy by angiotensin-converting-enzyme inhibitors, beta blockers, aldosterone inhibitors and diuretic medication, implanted cardioverter-defibrillator and cardiac resynchronization therapy, up to catecholamine therapy, ventricular assist device and heart transplantation (HTx), as appropriate.