What is Congestive Heart Failure?
Congestive heart failure is a chronic progressive condition when your heart can’t pump enough blood to provide your body with the oxygen and blood it needs. The CHF means your heart doesn’t work properly as usual. Congestive heart failure can be life-threatening.
What are the types of congestive heart failure?
There are different types of congestive heart failure including:
- Left-sided heart failure – The backup of fluid in your lungs, causing shortness of breath.
- Right-sided heart failure – The backup of fluid into your abdomen, legs, and feet, causing swelling.
- Systolic heart failure – Indicates the pumping problem due to the left ventricle not being able to contract vigorously.
- Diastolic heart failure – Indicates the filling problem due to the left ventricle not being able to relax or fill fully.
Also Read: Myocardial Fibrosis
How common is congestive heart failure?
CHF occurs at any age but is most common in older age and is increasing the prevalence. It equally affects men and women. It affects approximately 0.04% younger than 44 years and increases to 20.9% in patients aged 80 years or older.
What are the causes of congestive heart failure?
There are various causes of congestive heart failure:
- Coronary artery disease/ heart attack.
- Cardiomyopathy
- Congenital heart disease.
- Diabetes
- High blood pressure
- Arrhythmia
- Kidney disease.
- Alcohol use
- A body mass index higher than 30
- Chemotherapy
The most common cause of congestive heart failure is due to left-sided heart failure.
What are the early signs of congestive heart failure?
As mentioned, the early signs may not be very noticeable. Some of the early signs are as follows:
- Swelling in your abdomen, ankles, and legs.
- Coughing or wheezing
- Shortness of breath
- Heart palpitations.
- General fatigue
- Weight gain.
- Loss of appetite.
- Nausea feeling
Also Read: Why the Risk of Heart Disease is higher during winters than in summers
What are the congestive heart failure symptoms?
In the early stages of congestive heart failure, you won’t notice any symptoms in your health. If the condition progresses, you will notice gradual changes in your body.
| Symptoms you may notice first | Symptoms that indicate your condition has worsened | Symptoms that indicate severe heart conditions |
| Fatigue | Irregular heartbeat | Chest pain |
| Swelling in legs, ankles, and feet | Cough that originates from congested lungs | Rapid breathing |
| Weight Gain | Wheezing | Skin turns blue, due to lack of oxygen in your lungs |
| Increased urge to urinate, especially at night | Shortness of breath, which indicates pulmonary oedema | Fainting |
Symptoms of heart failure in children and infants:
In infants and young children can be difficult to recognize heart failure.
The symptoms may include:
- Poor feeding
- Excessive sweating
- Difficulty in breathing
Also Read: Troponin Test
What are the triggering factors for congestive heart failure?
There are some triggering factors for congestive heart failure:
- Above 65
- Using tobacco products, cocaine, or alcohol.
- Sedentary lifestyle.
- Hypertension
- Having a heart attack
- A family history of congestive heart failure.
- Having coronary artery disease.
- Having salty and fatty food.
- Congenital heart disease
What are the complications of congestive heart failure?
There are some complications of congestive heart failure that may include:
- Irregular heartbeat
- Sudden cardiac arrest
- Pulmonary hypertension
- Kidney damage
- Liver damage
- Malnutrition
- Heart valve problems
- Fluid in your lungs
Also Read: Exercise for the sake of your heart
What are the four stages of congestive heart failure?
Congestive heart failure is a chronic progressive condition that gradually worsens with time. There are four congestive heart failure stages (Stages A, B, C and D).
Stage A (Pre-heart failure):
This stage means you’re at a high risk of developing heart failure. If you have a family history of congestive heart failure or any one of the medical conditions:
- Hypertension
- Coronary heart disease
- Diabetes
- Metabolic disorder
- History of rheumatic fever
- History of alcohol use disorder
- Family history of cardiomyopathy
- History of some cancer drugs that can damage your heart muscle.
Stage B (Pre-heart failure):
Stage B means that the left ventricular structure is structurally abnormal or not working well and you have had any symptoms regarding heart failure.
Stage C:
In this stage, people have a congestive heart failure diagnosis. They currently have or previously had signs and symptoms of the condition.
Stage D and reduced EF (Ejection Fraction):
In this last stage, people have heart failure with reduced ejection fraction. This is the final stage of the congestive heart failure. A patient may experience the symptoms at rest.
How to diagnose congestive heart failure?
The common tests that will be done to diagnose congestive heart failure are:
- Blood tests
- Cardiac Catheterization
- Chest X-ray
- Echocardiogram
- Electrocardiogram
- Heart MRI
- Cardiac computed tomography
- Stress test
- Genetic testing
- Multigated Acquisition Scan (MUGA scan)
How can I lower my risk of congestive heart failure?
If you want to lower the risk of congestive heart failure then you can change your lifestyle to give yourself the best chance of preventing heart failure. Some things you can do in your lifestyle:
- Manage your healthy weight
- Eating healthy foods that are good for your heart, low-sodium diet.
- Regular exercise
- Manage your stress
- Stop the use of tobacco products
- Avoid alcohol
- Enough sleep
Also Read: Health tips for healthy heart
Heart failure vs heart attack
In a heart attack, a blood clot or the sticky substance (plaque) buildup in your arteries blocks the blood flow to the heart. The heart muscle begins to die without oxygen. You should need immediate treatment to open up the blocked arteries and restore blood flow to the heart.
Heart failure is different from heart attack. Heart failure is a progressive process. Your heart gradually becomes damaged from working too hard. With time, it becomes less able to pump enough blood out to your body’s needs.
Homeopathic Management:
Homeopathy can play a significant role in the management of congestive heart failure. Homoeopathic medicines are known to be natural and effective in the treatment of cardiovascular disease.
- Aurum metallicum- It is an effective homoeopathic medicine for heart diseases where the patient has a sensation as if the heart stopped beating for two or three seconds, immediately followed by a tumultuous rebound with sinking at the epigastrium.
- Digitalis purpura- It is an excellent homeopathic remedy for heart failure with an irregular heartbeat. The patient has a sensation as if the heart would stop beating if he moved, must hold his breath and keep still.
- Crataegus- Suited to patients with heart weakness, oppression and insomnia. The patient experiences extreme dyspnoea on least exertion without much increase in pulse rate.
- Naja tripudians- Most suited to cases of heart failure with weakness and valvular disorders. Heart symptoms with pain in forehead and temples.
- Cardus marianus- Acts well in heart complaints with liver affections where pain and pressure are felt in the region of the heart with the oppression of breathing.
