The Framingham criteria for the diagnosis of heart failure consists of the concurrent presence of either two major criteria or one major and two minor criteria.
Major criteria comprise the following:
Paroxysmal nocturnal dyspnea
Weight loss of 4.5 kg in 5 days in response to treatment
Neck vein distention
Rales
Acute pulmonary edema
Hepatojugular reflux
S 3 gallop
Central venous pressure greater than 16 cm water
Circulation time of 25 seconds or longer
Radiographic cardiomegaly
Pulmonary edema, visceral congestion, or cardiomegaly at autopsy
Minor criteria (accepted only if they cannot be attributed to another medical condition) are as follows:
Nocturnal cough
Dyspnea on ordinary exertion
A decrease in vital capacity by one third the maximal value recorded
Pleural effusion
Tachycardia (rate of 120 bpm)
Hepatomegaly
Bilateral ankle edema
(Medscape)