Is Congestive Heart Failure Reversible

Can You Drink Coffee If You Have Congestive Heart Failure

According to recent studies, as noted by the American Heart Association, drinking one or more cups of caffeinated coffee may reduce the risk of heart failure. But other studies noted that drinking several cups throughout the day may not be safe. When in doubt, talk to your cardiologist and nutritionist about the amount of coffee you can drink.

Why Its Important To Know Your Ef

If you have a heart condition, it is important for you and your doctor to know your EF. Your EF can help your doctor determine the best course of treatment for you. Measuring your EF also helps your healthcare team check how well our treatment is working.

Ask your doctor how often you should have your EF checked. In general, you should have your EF measured when you are first diagnosed with a heart condition, and as needed when your condition changes.

How Does Heart Failure Affect Quality Of Life And Lifestyle

With the right care and treatment plan, heart failure may limit your activities, but many adults still enjoy life. How well you feel depends on how well your heart muscle is working, your symptoms and how well you respond to and follow your treatment plan. This includes caring for yourself and living a healthy lifestyle .

Because heart failure is a chronic long-term illness, talk to your doctor and your family about your preferences for medical care. You can complete an advance directive or living will to let everyone involved in your care know your desires. A living will details the treatments you do or dont want to prolong your life. It is a good idea to prepare a living will while you are well in case you arent able to make these decisions at a later time.

Reviewed by a Cleveland Clinic medical professional.

References

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How To Prevent Congestive Heart Failure

This article was medically reviewed by Victor Catania, MD. Dr. Catania is a board certified Family Medicine Physician in Pennsylvania. He received his MD from the Medical University of the Americas in 2012 and completed his residency in Family Medicine at the Robert Packer Hospital. He is a member of the American Board of Family Medicine.There are 11 references cited in this article, which can be found at the bottom of the page. This article has been viewed 23,657 times.

Researchers agree that congestive heart failure is a serious health condition that occurs when your heart isnt pumping blood efficiently throughout your body.XTrustworthy SourceMayo ClinicEducational website from one of the worlds leading hospitalsGo to source People who suffer from certain health conditions, such as coronary artery disease or high blood pressure, are at risk for developing CHF.XTrustworthy SourceMayo ClinicEducational website from one of the worlds leading hospitalsGo to source Experts note that although not all heart conditions can be reversed, making changes to your diet and your lifestyle will help to improve the symptoms and allow you to live a longer, fuller life.XTrustworthy SourceMayo ClinicEducational website from one of the worlds leading hospitalsGo to source

Living Longer And Better

There are many diseases that can masquerade as congestive heart failure. All that swells is not heart failure. In addition to conventional forms of heart failure, there also are similar conditions caused by a stiff heart muscle and secondary heart problems caused by chronic lung conditions. Most of these can be treated.

We now know how important it is to get early diagnosis and treatment for CHF. Patients can now have a brighter outlook on congestive heart failure that wasnt there in decades past. This makes it possible to not only live longer but live better. A fulfilling, symptom-free life is achievable.

COVID-19 showed us that protecting your heart is more important than ever. Be sure to stay on top of treatments, medications, and routine care to keep yourself in the best condition possible to help fight off germs and illnesses.

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What Is The Long

Yes, heart failure can be fatal when its not treated. Healthline explains that about 50-percent of patients with CHF live beyond 5-years following diagnosis, and points to a study that estimates around 20-years for those diagnosed under age 50 with lower risk factors.

The source also notes age and gender can affect these outcomes. Women with CHF tend to live a bit longer than men with this condition but may experience more symptoms.

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Acute Heart Failure Vs Chronic Heart Failure

Acute heart failure has a sudden onset and symptoms can appear without warning.

In chronic heart failure, that difficulty is ongoing and long-term. More people develop chronic heart failure than acute heart failure, and around 80 percent of acute heart failure cases are people with chronic heart failure whose symptoms rapidly become worse.

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Severe Heart Failure May Be Reversible

Scientists may have discovered a way of reversing heart failure by getting heart muscle to regenerate itself.

They found that silencing a signaling pathway in mice that had developed heart failure following a heart attack activated a previously unrecognized self-healing process.

In a paper recently published in the journal Nature, the researchers, led by a team from Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, TX, report their findings about the signaling pathway, which is known as Hippo.

Heart failure is a serious condition that affects around 5.7 million adults in the United States. It develops when the heart cannot pump enough blood to meet the bodys needs.

Heart failure does not mean that the heart has stopped pumping, but it does mean that vital organs do not get the oxygen and nutrients they need to function properly. Around half of patients with heart failure do not live more than 5 years after diagnosis.

Heart failure remains the leading cause of mortality from heart disease, explains corresponding author James F. Martin, a professor who specializes in regenerative medicine at Baylor College of Medicine and who is also director of the Cardiomyocyte Renewal Lab at the Texas Heart Institute, also in Houston.

Risk Factors For Heart Failure

Health conditions that left unrecognized or untreated will increase the lifetime risk of developing heart failure. Some of these diseases include:

• Coronary heart disease and heart attacks
• High blood pressure
• Diabetes
• Obesity

Unhealthy behaviors can also increase your risk for heart failure, especially for people who have one of the diseases listed above. Unhealthy behaviors include:

• Smoking or using tobacco
• Use of illegal drugs, like methamphetamines or even excessive alcohol intake
• Eating foods high in fat, cholesterol, and sodium
• Not getting enough physical activity

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Common Types Of Congestive Heart Failure

The most common type of congestive heart failure is the left-sided CHF. It occurs when the left ventricle of your heart does not pump blood properly.

As congestive heart failure progresses, it might get difficult for you to breathe as the fluid builds up in the lungs.

Left-sided congestive heart failure has two types:

• Diastolic heart failure
• Systolic heart failure

The other type of congestive heart failure is the right-sided CHF. In this type, the right ventricle is unable to supply blood to your lungs.

As a result, blood gets backed up in the vessels, causing a buildup of fluid in your abdomen, lower extremities, and your vital organs.

A person can get both right-sided and left-sided congestive heart failure at the same time. It usually begins at the left side of your heart, and if left untreated, travels to the right.

Diagnosis Of Acute Heart Failure

Acute heart failure, as well as some of its complications such as pulmonary edema, is a very serious condition. Medical attention should be sought immediately if AHF is suspected.

Diagnosis is based on the symptoms, patient history and physical examination for signs that the heart is failing to pump enough blood.

Diagnostic tests can identify what type of heart failure is involved and which ventricle or side of the heart is involved, as treatments can differ. Tests that may be ordered include:

• Electrocardiogram , which uses electrodes to monitor electrical activity in the heart
• Blood oxygen levels should also be monitored
• Various blood tests can show underlying causes for heart failure or reveal effects of complications
• Chest X-ray, which can be useful to monitor response to treatment
• Echocardiogram , which builds a picture of the heart as it pumps blood and can help identify the type of failure
• MRI or computerised tomography scans can show damage to heart muscle
• Nuclear ventriculography, which uses radioactive materials injected into the bloodstream to form an image of the heart moving

Types of heart failure which may occur in combination can be diagnosed by scanning, and testing the capabilities of the heart include:

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Outlook For Heart Failure

Heart failure is a serious long-term condition that’ll usually continue to get slowly worse over time.

It can severely limit the activities you’re able to do and is often eventually fatal.

But it’s very difficult to tell how the condition will progress on an individual basis.

It’s very unpredictable. Lots of people remain stable for many years, while in some cases it may get worse quickly.

Symptoms Of Heart Failure

Heart failure interferes with the kidney’s normal function of eliminating excess sodium and waste products from the body. In congestive heart failure, the body retains more fluid, yet not all heart failure patients retain fluid. Here are the symptoms of heart failure:

• Shortness of breath during daily activities.
• Having shortness of breath when lying down or sleeping.
• Weight gain with swelling in the feet, legs, ankles, or stomach.
• Generally feeling tired or weak.

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Living With Heart Failure

There are five things patients diagnosed with heart failure need to do every day at home to manage their heart failure. The following MAWDS acronym may help you remember and follow these basic steps:

• Medications: Take your medications as prescribed by your doctor and heart care team, let them know if you dont tolerate your medications and dont run out of them.
• Activity: Stay active every day, do what you can to keep your body strong.
• Weight: Weigh yourself each day, recognize when changes in your weight mean you are retaining more fluid.
• Diet: Follow your die, that means low salt and limit fluid intake .
• Symptoms: Recognize your symptoms and know when to call for help.

Surgical Options To Treat Underlying Causes Of Heart Failure

• Coronary artery bypass graft or angioplasty to prevent and treat heart failure caused by blocked arteries. During bypass surgery, blood vessels taken from another part of the body usually the leg are used to link the open parts of a blocked artery around the blockage. In angioplasty, a thin flexible tube called a catheter is inserted through a small incision in the groin or neck into a blood vessel. In one procedure, a balloon is introduced through the catheter into the center of a blocked blood vessel. When the balloon is inflated, the blockage material is compressed back against the walls of the artery. A small metal device, called a stent, may be inserted through the catheter to serve as a permanent barrier to keep the plaque compressed. In another type of procedure, instruments are introduced through the catheter to remove the plaque.
• Implantation of pacemakers and other devices such as artificial heart valves
• Repairing congenital heart defects

Surgical treatments for heart failure itself include:

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How Chf Is Diagnosed

There are several ways a doctor can diagnose heart failure aside from considering your own medical history as well as your family history, as well as administering a physical exam. You might be asked to take a stress test to see how your heart responds to physical demands, for example.

The doctor can also turn to an electrocardiogram to monitor your hearts electrical activity, as well as a chest X-ray to pinpoint an enlarged heart or damaged lungs. It can also use a B-type natriuretic peptide blood test to determine how severe the heart failure is.

What Is Heart Failure

The term “heart failure” can be frightening. It doesn’t mean the heart has “failed” or stopped working. It means the heart doesn’t pump as well as it should.

Heart failure is a major health problem in the United States, affecting about 5.7 million Americans. About 550,000 new cases of heart failure occur each year. It’s the leading cause of hospitalization in people older than 65.

If you have heart failure, you’ll enjoy better health and quality of life if you take care of yourself and keep yourself in balance. It’s important to learn about heart failure, how to keep in good balance, and when to call the doctor.

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How To Reverse Heart Disease

If you are wondering how to reverse heart disease the answer has been clearly delineated by a group of doctors who have devoted their professional lives to understanding this issue.

Dr. Dean Ornish was the first such physician who demonstrated that heart disease can be prevented. Furthermore, his programs not only prevented heart disease, but once established can reverse heart disease with simple to adopt lifestyle changes and without the use of surgery or medication. Dr. Caldwell Esselstyn further documented Dr. Ornishs work, in his landmark studies with patients. Through his role at the Cleveland Clinic where he too, using simple dietary and lifestyle changes was able to reverse heart disease and prevent heart attacks in patients that had well established coronary artery disease.

What Are The Signs Of Congestive Heart Failure

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that 6.2 million Americans have heart failure, and heart failure was mentioned on more than 13% of death certificates in 2018. Knowing the signs of CHF and promptly seeking medical care can save lives. Be sure to speak with a medical professional if youre experiencing:

• Sudden weight gain
• Shortness of breath during routine activities
• A frequent urge to urinate, especially at night
• Irregular heartbeat
• Chronic cough or wheezing

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Healthiest Hearts On Earth

Scientists recently investigated a tribe in South America that has the lowest reported rates of heart disease in the world. Theyre called the Tsimane. Their arteries are amazingly clean. CT scanning revealed that plaque is virtually non-existent.

What do they eat? Like the Pritikin Eating Plan, their diet is carbohydrate-rich, but its good carbs theyre eating, rich in fiber and straight from the earth not the hyper-processed, refined carbohydrates typical in American society.

The average LDL cholesterol level of middle-aged and older Tsimane men and women is within the highly desirable range of 70 to 90. Their average blood pressure is about 116/73, and remains normal even in Tsimane 75 years and older.

History And Physical Examination

• References

Patients with heart failure can have decreased exercise tolerance with dyspnea, fatigue, generalized weakness, and fluid retention, with peripheral or abdominal swelling and possibly orthopnea.3 Patient history and physical examination are useful to evaluate for alternative or reversible causes .3,4,8 Nearly all patients with heart failure have dyspnea on exertion. However, heart failure accounts for only 30 percent of the causes of dyspnea in the primary care setting.24 The absence of dyspnea on exertion only slightly decreases the probability of systolic heart failure, and the presence of orthopnea or paroxysmal nocturnal dyspnea has a small effect in increasing the probability of heart failure .21,23

The presence of a third heart sound is an indication of increased left ventricular end-diastolic pressure and a decreased LVEF. Despite being relatively uncommon findings, a third heart sound and displaced cardiac apex are good predictors of left ventricular dysfunction and effectively rule in the diagnosis of systolic heart failure .21,23

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Can You Reverse Heart Disease

Making simple changes in what you eat, how often you exercise, how much you weigh, and how you manage stress can help put the brakes on heart disease.

But can you actually reverse it, not just slow it down?

You can undo some, but probably not all, of the damage. Youâll have to make big, lasting changes to your lifestyle.

Changes In Urination And Bowel Movements

Although not as common, changes in urination can be symptoms of heart failure. Some people experience an increased urge to urinate at night, while others will urinate more often during the day. Constipation can also develop due to heart failure, and straining or pushing to pass a bowel movement will further aggravate the symptoms. Both symptoms are indicative of the bodys inability to properly function due to the inconsistent blood supply.

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Possible Causes Of Congestive Heart Failure

WebMD says there are a number of possible reasons why one would develop CHF, largely due to sustained damage. For example, it says that a heart attack that blocks your coronary artery can cease the blood flow to your heart muscle. Meanwhile, other factors that can damage the heart include infections and substance abuse.

The source explains that diseases such as thyroid disease and diabetes can be causes of heart failure. Coronary artery disease in particular can limit the supply of blood to the heart muscle due to an issue with the arteries . Other health conditions such as high blood pressurecan also contribute to CHF.