What is congestive heart failure?
Congestive heart failure is a condition that develops when your heart can’t pump enough blood to supply your body with what it needs to function properly.
A healthy heart typically pumps out 50 percent or more of the blood in the ventricle in just one heartbeat. With congestive heart failure, a lesser percentage of blood travels out of the heart to other areas of your body, which isn’t sufficient to meet your body’s needs.
What are the symptoms of congestive heart failure?
Congestive heart failure can affect one or both sides of your heart, causing a number of side effects, including:
- Chronic fatigue
- Shortness of breath
- An irregular heartbeat
- Fluid buildup in your lungs
- Swelling in your legs and feet
If left untreated, heart failure can worsen, leading to other health complications, including organ damage or failure. Congestive heart failure can become life-threatening without proper medical care.
What causes congestive heart failure?
The efficiency of your heart’s blood-pumping function can decrease due to underlying medical conditions, such as high blood pressure and diabetes. You could also be at increased risk for the disease as you age or due to being overweight.
Other common causes of congestive heart failure include:
- Smoking
- Heart attack
- Faulty valves
- Inflammation
- Thyroid disorders
- Congenital heart defects
Certain medications, including anti-inflammatory drugs and anesthetics, can also increase your risk for developing congestive heart failure.
What treatments are available for congestive heart failure?
Dr. Rao and the medical team provide on-site diagnostic tests to confirm congenital heart failure. Depending on the severity of your condition, they offer several treatments to prevent a worsening of your condition and symptoms.
Treatment of congenital heart failure can include medications to reduce fluid buildup in the lungs and lower extremities. Medications are also available to control high blood pressure and increase blood flow from the heart.
If faulty valves or other structural defects of the heart and/or vessels contribute to your condition, Dr. Rao can refer you to a cardiologist for additional treatment or surgery.
Don’t put off an evaluation of congestive heart failure. You can schedule a comprehensive evaluation today using the online booking feature or by calling the Prima Medicine office nearest you.
