Heart Disease
Heart Failure
What are the symptoms of heart failure?
You may experience some of the following symptoms:
- You may feel more tired than usual, because your muscles are not getting all the oxygen-rich blood they need.
- You may feel short of breath when you exert yourself. Normally, with exertion, the heart pumps more vigorously to supply extra blood to the working muscles. With heart failure, the heart cannot clear all the blood from the lungs. The lungs become congested, making it difficult to breathe.
- Sometimes you may wake up feeling short of breath or be short of breath when lying flat. When lying flat, some of the extra fluid that has been in the tissues finds its way back into the bloodstream and may collect in the lungs. You may find it helpful to sleep with your head propped up on several pillows.
- Your feet and ankles may swell, because when the flow of blood slows up, the body retains more water.
- You may find you have to urinate more often than usual at night. This is also due to the extra fluid returning to the bloodstream during rest.
- Sometimes your heart may seem to beat faster or irregularly.
What your doctor may ask
People develop heart failure for different reasons. Therefore, your doctor will take a careful history of your condition. He or she will particularly want to know:
- If you have chest pain (angina), diabetes, high blood pressure, or previous heart problems.
- If you smoke.
- If you drink alcohol and, if so, how much.
