HEART FAILURE: WHAT IS IT AND HOW IS IT RELATED TO HYPERTENSION?

When talking about congestion, it is possible that you associate this expression with chaotic traffic, in which there is difficulty in circulation. The logic is similar to what happens in the human body when the individual goes through heart failure. Even the symptoms of this problem become clearer as the disease progresses.

What are the most common causes of heart failure?

This health problem, for example, is usually secondary and arises from another previous pathology that affects the functioning of the heart. The most common causes are:

• arterial hypertension (high blood pressure);
• diabetes;
• anemia;
• coronary artery disease;
• chronic lung disease;
• cardiac arrhythmia;
• thyroid disorders;
• heart muscle infection;
• HIV/AIDS ;
• congenital heart disease;
• heart valve disease;
• chagas disease;
• etc.

In addition to diagnostic patients with the above pathologies, other circumstances are also triggers for the onset of heart failure. This is the case for those undergoing cancer treatment , such as radiotherapy and chemotherapy, which can weaken the heart. Similarly, excessive intake of alcohol and other drugs can also cause this problem.

What is the relationship between heart failure and hypertension?

The explanation is that high blood pressure overloads the heart, which gradually weakens it. Therefore, the organ tends to decrease its ability to pump enough blood to meet the demands of the body.

This situation becomes even more delicate because hypertension is usually a silent disease. Thus, it is common for individuals to only realize the existence of this pathology in an advanced stage, when it is more difficult to treat the condition. The most common symptoms at this stage are shortness of breath in daily activities and swelling in the feet and legs.

Despite the fact that treatment for hypertension is delicate, it remains vital for the survival and quality of life of patients. However, this includes changing your lifestyle, such as exercising, avoiding stress, and adopting a healthy diet.

Still, taking medications and regularly visiting a cardiologist is also necessary. In more advanced cases, the doctor may recommend a heart transplant or the introduction of a pacemaker or defibrillator. Therefore, it is always important to prevent this situation, for example, by frequently measuring the pressure to ensure control.

What are the risk factors for heart failure?

For greater prevention of this pathology, it is also important that some groups in society included in the risk factors redouble their care. The main ones are:

• hypertension: as seen, the elevation of blood pressure gradually weakens the functions of the heart;
• history of heart attack: if you or someone in your family has had a heart attack, it is very likely that you have developed or inherited a cardiovascular disease;
• diabetes : the excessive increase in blood sugar, which characterizes diabetes, damages blood vessels and the heart;
• etc.

What are the main symptoms of heart failure?

You’ve followed throughout reading that staying on top of symptoms is one way to prevent or treat an illness quickly. Thus, the most common symptoms of heart failure include:

• shortness of breathe;
• impaired memory;
• confusion;
• feeling tired;
• sleeping problems associated with respiratory distress;
• swelling of legs and feet;
• loss of appetite and/or bloated abdomen;
• cough with phlegm;
• increased urination at night;
• etc.

However, it is worth mentioning that symptoms do not always appear in the early stages, which is even more dangerous for the search for treatment. Still, some people confuse the signals emitted with other circumstances, such as aging, stress at work, etc.

How is heart failure diagnosed?

The alert emitted by the symptoms is usually the first trigger for the search for a doctor, responsible for the diagnosis of the disease. However, you already understood that this problem does not always have symptoms. Therefore, it is important to make regular appointments with a professional.

Once there, he should analyze his lifestyle, present and past illnesses and family history. In the physical examination, there is a check of the heart, lungs, legs, abdomen and other parts of the body, which may indicate the presence of this pathology. In case of suspicion, diagnostic tests may be ordered, such as:

• stress test (stress test);
• echocardiogram;
• electrocardiogram (ECG);
• cardiac catheterization;
• chest X-ray;
• etc.

Another way to assess your heart’s function is by tracking your stroke function over time. This consists, for example, of the percentage of blood pumped into the body during each beat.

As seen throughout the reading, there are several ways to diagnose heart failure in order to treat the condition properly. Therefore, it is essential to keep an eye out and not ignore any signals given by the body. In addition, it is essential to adopt preventive measures to prevent the heart from becoming fragile and this problem from arising, such as physical exercise, healthy eating, etc.