Cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) for selected heart failure (HF) patients improves
symptoms and reduces morbidity and mortality; however, the prognosis of HF is still
poor. There is an emerging need for tools that might help in optimal patient selection
and provide prognostic information for patients and their families. Several risk scores
have been created in recent years; although, no literature review is available that
would list the possible scores for the clinicians. We identified forty-eight risk
scores in CRT and provided the calculation methods and formulas in a ready-to-use
format. The reviewed score systems can predict the prognosis of CRT patients; some
of them have even provided an online calculation tool. Significant heterogeneity is
present between the various risk scores in terms of the variables incorporated and
some variables are not yet used in daily clinical practice. The lack of cross-validation
of the risk scores limits their routine use and objective selection. As the number
of prognostic markers of CRT is overwhelming, further studies might be required to
analyze and cross-validate the data.
