The human heart is a very powerful organ that pumps blood through out the body through a network of veins and arteries, also known as our cardiovascular system.
It is a muscular organ that carries oxygen rich blood and distributes it to the body. Oxygen is needed by our body to perform and function, without it our organs will seize to function and eventually die.
How does our heart function?
The heart has different chambers and both left and right side will have two – the ventricles and the atria.
The unoxygenated blood, that resulted after circulation in your body, will go to your heart passing through the large vein going to the right atrium then will go to the right ventricle, passing through the tricuspid valve.
The right ventricle will then contract ejecting the oxygen-poor blood from the heart to the lungs. When the blood reaches the lungs, it will then be oxygenated.
This oxygen-rich blood (which is bright red in colour) will then go to the left atrium of your heart and then passes the mitral valve, then will go to the left ventricle. The left ventricle will contract and will eject the oxygen-rich blood to the body through the aorta.
This is the physiology of the heart, explained in a simple way.
Definition of Heart Failure
Heart failure is the heart’s inability to pump enough blood to meet the requirements of the body. This is comprised of the set of symptoms that occur when the body is not getting enough oxygen and blood supply.
This condition may be due to different reasons:
- Weak or damaged ventricular walls – can be the reason why there is no enough blood supply throughout the body
- Stiff or thickened ventricular wall that prevents blood from filling the heart
Symptoms of Heart Failure
There will be different signs and symptoms that can help your doctor diagnose heart failure. These symptoms will vary from one person to another.
- Shortness of breath
When the heart does not deliver enough oxygenated blood through out your body, it will result to shortness of breath. This may occur if you are doing an activity, or even when at rest. - Swollen legs and ankles and even in the abdominal region
When the heart does not have enough force to pump blood to the lungs, this will result of blood build up in the veins, or build up of fluids in the tissue of your body also known as oedema. - Fatigue
Common causes of Heart Failure
Heart failure does not literally mean that your heart seized to stop working. It is only a condition where in it needed more support in doing its function.
Common causes of heart failure will be the following:
- Coronary Artery Disease
- Myocardial Infarction (heart attack)
- Hypertension (increased in blood pressure)
- Diabetes Mellitus
- Damaged heart valves
- Damaged heart muscles
- Arrhythmias (irregular heartbeats)
- Lung diseases
- Sleep Apnoea
- Heart defects
- Toxins
- Substance abuse
- Viral infection affecting the heart
- Some chemotherapy drugs
- Thyroid diseases
- Anaemia
There will be time that there is no known cause for heart failure (also known as idiopathic).
Different types of Heart Failure
Heart failure can, often times, affect one side – either left sided or right sided, or can occur in both. This disease can be classified based on the pumping ability of the heart (reduced or preserved) or based on the course of the disease (acute or chronic)
Systolic Heart Failure
In this type, there is not enough force to pump blood out of the heart. The heart muscle becomes smaller and weaker so there is less ejection of blood every contraction. This is characterised by thin muscle walls and enlarged lower chambers.
Diastolic Heart Failure
In this type of heart failure, there is a filling problem. The heart is not filling up with enough blood to be pumped through out the body. There is less blood filling up the ventricles, so less blood will be ejected and distributed to the organs and body. This is characterised to have larger muscle walls.
Left-sided Heart Failure
The left ventricle does not deliver enough oxygenated blood to the body. This causes shortness of breath and fatigue. There is a weak left ventricle causing increased blood pressure in the blood vessels between the lungs and the left ventricle. This increased pressure causes accumulation of fluid in the lung tissues leading to difficulty of breathing.
Right-sided Heart Failure
There is a weakened right ventricle and do not have enough force to pump blood going to the lungs. This will lead to accumulation of blood in the veins and also build up of fluids in the body tissues. This can explain the swelling of legs and abdominal area.
Is there a cure for Heart Failure?
If there is an underlying disease causing heart failure, then we try to treat that underlying problem. An example of this is Hypertension, if you treat hypertension with drugs, the symptoms of heart failure goes away.
However, if your heart failure is caused by Myocardial Infarction or heart attack, your heart muscles are already damaged and you can only manage the symptoms of heart failure.
What are the treatment used for Heart Failure?
Understanding the cause of heart failure is very important in knowing how you will manage or treat it.
There are different modalities used to treat, manage or relieve symptoms. The list includes:
- Surgery (Coronary by-pass, Heart valve reconstruction surgery, Heart transplant, etc.)
- Heart beat assisting devices (Ventricular Assisting Device VAD)
- Lifestyle changes (exercise regularly, limiting salt and alcohol, achieving healthy weight)
- Medications (Diuretics, Ace Inhibitors, Beta-blockers, etc.)
Is it going to get better?
Heart failure symptoms will sometimes improve, depending on the underlying factors or if the underlying disease has been treated. The symptoms will go away and the pumping mechanism of the heart improves.
Oftentimes, heart failure is progressive and you only manage the symptoms. It is important to have a healthy lifestyle that will help you have a better quality of life.
To be able to understand more about this condition, you must discuss this with your GP or Cardiologist.
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