Stages Of Heart Failure
In 2001, the American Heart Association and American College of Cardiology described the Stages of Heart Failure. These stages, which were updated in 2005, will help you understand that heart failure is often a progressive condition and can worsen over time. They will also help you understand why a new medication was added to your treatment plan and may help you understand why lifestyle changes and other treatments are needed.
The stages classified by the AHA and ACC are different than the New York Heart Association clinical classifications of heart failure that rank patients as class I-II-III-IV, according to the degree of symptoms or functional limits. Ask your doctor what stage of heart failure you are in.
Check the table below to see if your therapy matches what the AHA and ACC recommend. Note that you cannot go backward in stage, only forward.
The table below outlines a basic plan of care that may or may not apply to you, based on the cause of your heart failure and your special needs. Ask your doctor to explain therapies that are listed if you do not understand why you are or are not receiving them.
The New York Heart Association clinical classifications of heart failure rank people as class I-II-III-IV, according to the degree of symptoms or functional limits. You can ask your doctor if you want to know what stage of heart failure youâre in.
How Is Congestive Heart Failure Treated
Advanced treatment approaches are extending and improving quality-of-life for patients with congestive heart failure. Congestive heart failure is treated and managed through a combination of lifestyle modifications and a wide range of therapies, including medication and interventions, which help the heart to work more effectively and alleviate heart failure symptoms. Pacemakers and ventricular assist devices can make it easier for heart the heart to pump blood and remain in rhythm. For some patients with advanced heart failure, a heart transplant may be an option.
What Is The Outlook For People With Heart Failure
With the right care, heart failure may not stop you from doing the things you enjoy. Your prognosis or outlook for the future will depend on how well your heart muscle is functioning, your symptoms, and how well you respond to and follow your treatment plan.
Everyone with a long-term illness, such as heart failure, should discuss their desires for extended medical care with their doctor and family. An “advance directive” or “living will” is one way to let everyone know your wishes. A living will expresses your desires about the use of medical treatments to prolong your life. This document is prepared while you are fully competent in case you are unable to make these decisions at a later time.
Show Sources
Also Check: How Long Does Open Heart Surgery Last
Contact Sonas For Home Health Care Services
If your family member has recently been diagnosed with congestive heart failure, now may be the ideal time to consider home health care. A home care service provider can be with your loved one on a customized schedule that is right for your family.
This means that even if you are not able to be with them, you can be confident in knowing they are getting everything they need to stay healthy, safe, and comfortable, as well as maintain as much independence and control as possible.
If you or an aging loved one are considering home health care services in Florida, contact the caring staff at Sonas Home Health Care. Call today .
Can Surgery Be Used To Treat Heart Failure
In heart failure, surgery may sometimes prevent further damage to the heart and improve the heart’s function. Procedures used include:
- Coronary artery bypass grafting surgery. The most common surgery for heart failure caused by coronary artery disease is . Although surgery is more risky for people with heart failure, new strategies before, during, and after surgery have reduced the risks and improved outcomes.
- Heart valve surgery. Diseased heart valves can be treated both surgically and non-surgically .
- Implantable left ventricular assist device . The LVAD is known as the “bridge to transplantation” for patients who haven’t responded to other treatments and are hospitalized with severe systolic heart failure. This device helps your heart pump blood throughout your body. It allows you to be mobile, sometimes returning home to await a heart transplant. It may also be used as destination therapy for long-term support in patients who are not eligible for transplant.
- Heart transplant. A heart transplant is considered when heart failure is so severe that it doesn’t respond to all other therapies, but the person’s health is otherwise good.
Read Also: What Is The Formula For Finding Your Maximum Heart Rate
Fluid Buildup In The Lungs
Over time, fluid may also accumulate in your lungs. This can make it harder to breathe, and you may find it difficult to catch your breath . This shortness of breath can be more severe in women than in men . Breathing is usually especially difficult when you are lying down . Eventually, this fluid buildup in your lungs can lead to a cough that worsens when you lie down .
- Over time, fluid may also accumulate in your lungs.
- Eventually, this fluid buildup in your lungs can lead to a cough that worsens when you lie down .
What To Do If You Notice Worsening Heart Failure Symptoms
Heart failure can lead to serious complications, such as kidney or liver damage, other heart conditions, pulmonary hypertension and stroke. If youre experiencing worsening symptoms of heart failure, keep track of them and talk to your doctor.
Seek immediate medical attention or call 911 if you experience:
- Cough that brings up a white or pink foamy substance
- Fainting, dizziness or confusion
You May Like: What Causes Heart Rate To Go Up
The Benefits Of Tracking
When youre aware of the changes, you are more likely to take action and make the small changes in your lifestyle and treatment plan that can help you live your longest and healthiest life.
Explore resources on our website and visit the Support Network to connect with others living with heart failure.
Signs And Symptoms Of Heart Attack
If you have any of these signs, call 9-1-1 and get to a hospital right away.
Also Check: How Much Aspirin Do You Take For A Heart Attack
When Should I Get Emergency Care
Go to the ER or call 911 if you have:
- New, unexplained, and severe chest pain that comes with shortness of breath, sweating, nausea, or weakness
- Fast heart rate , especially if you are short of breath
- Shortness of breath that doesn’t get better if you rest
- Sudden weakness, or you can’t move your arms or legs
- Sudden, severe headache
- Fainting spells
How Is Congestive Heart Failure Diagnosed
Diagnosis of congestive heart failure is achieved through a comprehensive assessment of the heart muscle, including evaluation of its pumping action and thickness of its walls. This testing also helps to determine the underlying cause of heart failure. Diagnostic tests for congestive heart failure may include:
- Resting or exercise electrocardiogram
- Biopsy or catheterization of the heart and arteries
Also Check: Which Vessels Carry Blood Toward The Heart
How Do I Manage My Heart Failure
Its important to follow the advice from your doctor and take the medicines youre prescribed. Making changes to your lifestyle is another way to improve your health. Changes you could try are:
- keeping active which has been proven to boost energy and improve sleep and quality of life
- keeping to a healthy weight and diet this will help your overall health and prevent extra strain on your heart
- limiting how much alcohol you drink lowering your chance of getting abnormal heart rhythms, high blood pressure and diseases such as stroke, liver problems and some cancers
- stopping smoking and using other tobacco products reducing your risk of developing heart and circulatory diseases
- watching the amount of fluid you have each day if advised by your medical team
- weighing yourself regularly sudden weight gain may mean too much fluid is building up in your body and will need treated.
Living a healthier lifestyle can be hard at first, but its important for your overall quality of life. Visit our healthy living hub to start eating healthier and manage things like smoking and stress today.
You May Like: How To Calculate Target Heart Rate Zone
The Earliest Symptoms Of Heart Failure Are Often Very Subtle But It’s Dangerous To Ignore Them
It’s an unfortunate truth that your body slows down in your sixth and seventh decades. Climbing a flight of stairs that you once took two at a time can now feel as daunting as scaling Mount Everest. While some degree of vitality loss can be attributed to natural aging, fatigue and breathlessness may also be signals that your heart is not functioning as well as it should. “There is a general tendency for people to ignore heart failure symptoms and attribute them to just getting older. Therefore, it was very important for us to create an easy way to identify those symptoms,” says Dr. Mandeep R. Mehra, medical director of the Heart and Vascular Center at Harvard-affiliated Brigham and Women’s Hospital.
Don’t Miss: Definition Congestive Heart Failure
Angiotensin Converting Enzyme Inhibitors
ACE inhibitors relax and widen your blood vessels. This helps to improve the flow of blood around your body, which reduces the amount of work your heart has to do.
ACE inhibitors have been shown to improve the symptoms of heart failure, reduce the need for hospital admission and improve life expectancy caused by heart failure.
Your symptoms should improve within a few weeks of starting treatment.
The main side effects of ACE inhibitors are dizziness and a cough. You will need to have regular blood tests, at least once every year, while taking an ACE inhibitor.
If you are taking an ACE inhibitor, you should check with your doctor or pharmacist before taking any other medicines. In particular, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory medicines should not be taken with an ACE inhibitor. You should also avoid products containing high levels of potassium, such as salt substitutes.
What Is The Outlook With Heart Failure
With the right care, congestive heart failure wont stop you from doing the things you enjoy. Your prognosis, or outlook for the future, will depend on:
- How well your heart muscle is working.
- How well you respond to your treatment plan.
- How well you follow your treatment plan.
One study says that people with heart failure have a life span 10 years shorter than those who dont have heart failure. Another study showed that the survival rates of people with chronic heart failure were 80% to 90% for one year, but that dropped to 50% to 60% for year five and down to 30% for 10 years.
A different study found that people who had heart failure and were discharged from the hospital had expected life spans ranging from three to 20 years, depending on various factors like age and gender. Its important to look at your specific situation when considering your prognosis.
You May Like: What Is Considered Resting Heart Rate
Types Of Heart Failure
Women are more likely than men to develop diastolic heart failure, which results from a stiffened heart muscle . Diastolic heart failure occurs because the heart is unable to relax properly between beats . The stiff heart cannot fill with enough blood to pump throughout your body . The other type of heart failure, systolic heart failure, occurs more frequently in men.Systolic heart failure occurs when the weakened heart muscle cannot contract forcefully enough for proper blood flow .
- Women are more likely than men to develop diastolic heart failure, which results from a stiffened heart muscle .
- Systolic heart failure occurs when the weakened heart muscle cannot contract forcefully enough for proper blood flow .
How Is Chf Diagnosed
After reporting your symptoms to your doctor, they may refer you to a heart specialist, or cardiologist.
The cardiologist will perform a physical exam, which will involve listening to your heart with a stethoscope to detect abnormal heart rhythms.
To confirm an initial diagnosis, a cardiologist might order certain diagnostic tests to examine your hearts valves, blood vessels, and chambers.
There are a variety of tests used to diagnose heart conditions. Because these tests measure different things, your doctor may recommend a few to get a full picture of your current condition.
Recommended Reading: When Checking Your Pulse During Exercise, You Should Measure Your Heart Rate For 30 Seconds.
Why Your Sleep Pattern Is Vital To Your Heart And Brain Health
“Many women are concerned about their breast cancer risk, and they perceive that as their greatest health threat,” said Dr. Deirdre Mattina, a cardiologist at the Cleveland Clinic. But “we know that one in three women are going to die of heart disease” every year.
For both women and men, signs of heart problems rarely occur in isolation.
“Symptoms often occur in clusters,” Jurgens said. “Very rarely does someone come in with just one symptom.”
And though sudden cardiac events heart attack or stroke, for example certainly appear without warning, many symptoms worsen over time.
Mattina said that patients with heart failure, for example, may report no longer being able to walk as far as they used to, or a gradual decline in the ability to take in full breaths.
“We’re looking for a pattern,” Mattina said.
Here are the most common ways for six different cardiovascular conditions that present in patients.
Common Symptoms Of Congestive Heart Failure In Men And Women
- Posted on: Jul 15 2019
Taking care of the heart is incredibly important in maintaining overall health and wellness. But patients who are noticing changes in their body and their ability to exercise may want to be evaluated by a doctor to look for problems that could be associated with the health of their heart. Conditions such as congestive heart failure are serious and the symptoms should not be ignored. Below is a list of common signs that congestive heart failure may be present:
- Chest pain that is caused by a heart attack
- Severe and sudden moments of shortness of breath
- Generalized fatigue and weakness unexplained by changes in activity levels
- Shortness of breath when lying down or exerting energy
- Swelling of the feet, ankles, and/or legs
- Coughing of white or pink phlegm
- Increased need for urinating during the night
- Swelling of the abdomen
- Increased and rapid weight gain from fluid retention
- Reduced appetite
- Inability to exercise
- Poor concentration and alertness
Some of these symptoms may be indicative of other medical conditions. However, if some or all are present, it is never a bad idea to contact a doctor for an immediate evaluation. In a case of emergency, such as the signs of a heart attack or inability to properly breath, it is essential that patients seek transportation to an emergency room as soon as possible as their condition may be life-threatening.
You May Like: How Old Do You Have To Be To Have A Heart Attack
Fluid Buildup In Body Tissues
When your heart cannot pump blood effectively, blood begins to back up in your blood vessels. Fluid from this backed up blood may accumulate in your body tissues. Many people find out they have heart failure after they notice swelling in their feet, ankles, legs or abdomen . Women are more likely than men to have swelling in their ankles and other extremities as a result of heart failure . This swelling may lead to weight gain, and you may notice that you need to urinate more often .
- When your heart cannot pump blood effectively, blood begins to back up in your blood vessels.
- Many people find out they have heart failure after they notice swelling in their feet, ankles, legs or abdomen .
Heart Failure Treatment Is A Team Effort
Heart failure management is a team effort, and you are the key player on the team. Your heart doctor will prescribe your medications and manage other medical problems. Other team members — including nurses, dietitians, pharmacists, exercise specialists, and social workers — will help you achieve success. But it is up to YOU to take your medications, make dietary changes, live a healthy lifestyle, keep your follow-up appointments, and be an active member of the team.
If you notice anything unusual, don’t wait until your next appointment to discuss it with your doctor. Call them right away if you have:
- Unexplained weight gain
- Swelling in your ankles, feet, legs, or belly that gets worse
- Shortness of breath that gets worse or happens more often, especially if you wake up feeling that way
- Bloating with a loss of appetite or nausea
- Extreme fatigue or more trouble finishing your daily activities
- A lung infection or a cough that gets worse
- Fast heart rate
- New irregular heartbeat
Also Check: Do Heart Attacks Go Away