Heart failure (congestive heart failure)

Heart failure is a long-term condition in which the heart can’t keep pumping blood well enough to meet the needs of the body. Initially, heart failure is treated with exercise and medication; if the condition deteriorates, surgery may be necessary. Your outlook is contingent on a variety of factors, including how well you care for yourself.

What is heart failure?

Heart failure, also known as congestive heart failure, is a long-term condition that worsens over time. Although the name implies that your heart has stopped working, heart failure simply means that your heart isn’t pumping blood as efficiently as it should. When your heart has less pumping power, it can damage your organs and cause fluid to accumulate in your lungs.

What is the prevalence of heart failure?

Almost six million Americans suffer from heart failure, and more than 870,000 are diagnosed each year. Heart failure (congestive heart failure) is the most common reason for hospitalisation in people over the age of 65.

What are the different types of heart failure? There are numerous causes of heart failure, but the condition is generally classified as follows:

Heart failure on the left side

Heart failure with reduced left ventricular function (HF-rEF) The lower left chamber of your heart (left ventricle) expands and becomes unable to squeeze (contract) hard enough to pump enough oxygen-rich blood to the rest of your body.

Heart failure in which the left ventricle still works (HF-pEF) Your heart beats and pumps normally, but the ventricles, which are the bottom chambers, are thicker and stiffer than usual. Your ventricles can’t relax and fill up all the way because of this. When your heart contracts, it sends less blood to the rest of your body because there is less blood in your ventricles.

Right-sided heart failure

Heart failure can also affect your heart’s right side. The most common cause is left-sided heart failure. Other causes include certain lung problems and organ problems.

What is congestive heart failure?

This is a condition in which your heart is unable to handle the volume of blood. This leads to accumulation in other parts of your body, most notably the lungs and lower extremities (feet and legs).

What are the complications of heart failure?

-Heart failure complications include the following:

-Heartbeat irregularity.

-Unexpected cardiac arrest.

-Heart valve issues.

-A fluid buildup in your lungs.

-Hypertension of the lungs

-Kidney failure.

-Damage to the liver

-Malnutrition

What are the heart failure stages?

Heart failure is a progressive condition that worsens over time. There are four stages of heart failure (Stages A, B, C, and D). The stages range from “high risk of developing heart failure” to “advanced heart failure.”

Stage A

Stage A is classified as pre-heart failure. It indicates that you are at high risk of developing heart failure because you have a family history of heart failure or have one or more of the following medical conditions:

-Hypertension.

-Diabetes.

-Coronary artery disease is a type of cardiovascular disease.

-Syndrome of metabolism

-A history of alcoholism

-Rheumatic fever history.

-Cardiomyopathy runs in the family.

Previous use of drugs that can harm your heart muscle, such as some cancer medications,

Stage B

Stage B is classified as pre-heart failure. It means your doctor has diagnosed you with systolic left ventricular dysfunction, but you’ve never experienced heart failure symptoms. The majority of people with stage B heart failure have an echocardiogram (echo) that shows an EF of 40% or less. (For more information on ejection fraction, see the “Diagnosis” section.) People in this category have heart failure and reduced EF (HF-rEF) due to any cause.

Stage C

People with stage C heart failure have been diagnosed with heart failure and have or have had symptoms of it.

There are many possible symptoms of heart failure. The most common are:

• Shortness of breath
• feeling fatigued.
• less able to exercise.
• Weak legs.
• waking up to urinate.
• swollen feet, ankles, lower legs, and abdomen (edoema).

Stage D and reduced EF

Stage D HF-rEF patients have advanced symptoms that do not improve with treatment. This is the most severe stage of heart failure.

What are the symptoms of heart failure?

Symptoms of heart failure include:

• Shortness of breath
• feeling tired (fatigue) and having leg weakness when you’re active.
• swelling in your ankles, legs, and abdomen.
• Weight gain.
• need to urinate while resting at night.
• Rapid or irregular heartbeats (palpitations)
• a dry, hacking cough.
• stomach that is full (bloated) or hard, loss of appetite, or nausea.

Your symptoms may be mild at times, or you may not have any symptoms at all. This does not mean you are no longer suffering from heart failure. Heart failure symptoms can range from mild to severe and may come and go. Unfortunately, heart failure typically worsens over time. As the condition worsens, you may experience additional or different signs or symptoms. It is critical to notify your doctor if you develop new symptoms or if your symptoms worsen.

What causes heart failure (congestive heart failure)?

Even though your risk of heart failure doesn’t change as you get older, you’re more likely to have it. Heart failure can be caused by a number of health problems that hurt the heart muscle. Some common conditions are:

• Coronary artery disease
• Heart attack.
• Cardiomyopathy.
• Heart issues are present at birth (congenital heart disease).
• Diabetes.
• High blood pressure (hypertension) This is a common cause among people who were born female.
• Heart arrhythmias (abnormal heart rhythms, including atrial fibrillation)
• Kidney disease.
• Having obesity.
• Tobacco and illicit drug use
• Medications. Some drugs used in chemotherapy to treat cancer can damage the heart.