Your doctor has listed the warning symptoms of heart failure – the main cause of delay is delay.

In a press release, cardiologist Agnė Mažutavičiūtė, a cardiologist at the Šiauliai Heart Center “Kardiolitos klinikai”, says that the biggest mistake patients make is not caring about their health and their delay. Often, patients return only when symptoms begin to interfere with normal life, but irreversible changes in the heart muscle may have already begun.

The disorder is caused by other diseases.

Heart failure is promoted and its progression is facilitated by any pathological condition of the heart. The most common cases of heart failure are due to ischemic heart disease, untreated high blood pressure, or heart rhythm disturbances. Other possible causes include congenital or acquired heart valve defects, myocarditis, dangerous arrhythmias, and other diseases.

According to A. Mažutavičiūtė, in the presence of these diseases, the general activity of the heart begins to deteriorate and heart failure develops.

“As it progresses, first, the compensatory mechanisms of the heart muscle come into play, stimulating the heart to maintain its overall function, the ability to supply blood to the body in the presence of fluid and salt retention. Unfortunately, to the long, the problem only worsens ”, assures the doctor.

A little later, the disease manifests itself in unpleasant symptoms: shortness of breath, swelling of the limbs, general weakness, chest baths, changes in weight and appetite, and others: sometimes shortness of breath occurs at night.

In the long term, swelling of the extremities occurs, fluid can accumulate in the abdomen, along the groin, and weight retention begins to increase due to fluid retention. There is general weakness, loss of appetite, nausea, depending on the predominant primary pathology, and worsening of specific symptoms: chest bathing, percussion, poor control of blood pressure and pulse rate. “

Early diagnosis is important

A cardiologist says that although medicine is improving every day, heart failure remains one of the most pressing problems in cardiology.

“It is difficult to determine the exact reason for this, but it would be possible to distinguish the damage caused by late diagnosis: the earlier the primary cardiac changes, indicating the onset of asymptomatic heart failure, the more effective its treatment, the easier the consequences. In Lithuania, people tend to see a doctor only when they feel very bad, unfortunately, at that time, irreversible changes are often found in the heart muscle, “warns the doctor.

Older people, in particular, should be in a hurry to get their health checked at the first signs. A. Mažutavičiūtė ensures that heart failure can be caused by any heart disease, which naturally occurs more often in older people.

“However, if a young person has a congenital heart defect, acute heart disease or other diseases caused by heart disease, they can also develop heart failure, just like an older patient,” says the cardiologist.

It is possible to control the disease.

Heart failure is diagnosed by various blood tests, including invasive laboratory, imaging, and blood tests.

“Laboratory tests performed by cardiologists help to diagnose the progression of heart failure, the current stage, the predominant primary pathologies, to diagnose cardiac rhythm or conduction disorders, possible ischemic changes. Transthoracic cardiac ultrasound is a gold standard and an indispensable test for diagnosing cardiac disorders, ”says A. Mažutavičiūtė.

According to her, it is difficult to completely prevent heart failure because any patient who already has heart problems is at risk.

However, the first signs of research and effective treatment can significantly slow its progression: fluid balance, limiting salt intake, improving physical condition, effectively correcting conditions that promote heart failure. “

The doctor adds that the disease is usually treated with medication, but it will also require the contribution of the patient to control it: “Today we have identified specific groups of drugs for the treatment of heart failure. The cardiologist must select the specific drug and its dose, taking into account the individual patient, their lifestyle, the regularity of drug use, and the expectations of treatment.

Complete recovery is rare, but with proper, patient-specific, and regular treatment, heart failure can be managed. “