Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsTypesSymptomsStagesCausesDiagnosisTreatmentPreventionOutlookNext in Heart Failure GuideCauses and Risk Factors of Heart Failure
Table of ContentsView All
View All
Table of Contents
Types
Symptoms
Stages
Causes
Diagnosis
Treatment
Prevention
Outlook
Next in Heart Failure Guide
Heart failure is when the heart does not effectively pump blood through the body. This can cause a series of symptoms that includeswelling, weakness, and difficulty breathing.
It becomes a life-threatening condition when the heart continues to weaken and cannot provide the body with enough blood. Coronary artery disease, heart attacks, and high blood pressure most commonly cause it.
This article will discuss the types of heart failure, its symptoms, and treatment. It will also cover how heart failure is diagnosed and prevented.
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Types of Heart Failure
Heart failure is either chronic or acute. Chronic heart failure develops slowly, whereas acute heart failure happens abruptly. From there, heart failure can be categorized into threetypes: right-sided heart failure, left-sided heart failure, and congestive heart failure.
To understand heart failure, knowing blood moves through the heart is important.
Left-Sided Heart Failure
Withleft-sided heart failure, also called left ventricular heart failure, the heart is not effectively pumping blood to the body. It must work harder to get blood to all the organs and tissues.
Within left-sided heart failure, there are two subtypes:
Right-Sided Heart Failure
Right-sided heart failure, also called right ventricular heart failure, is when the right ventricle does not pump blood to thelungseffectively. It can result from left-sided heart failure or other conditions.
Congestive Heart Failure
Congestive heart failure(CHF) is an advanced stage of heart failure. It is when the heart is not pumping blood effectively, and the blood is backing up within the body. This causes fluid buildup within the lungs, tissues, organs, and many other places.
Heart Failure and COVID-19When someone has COVID-19, it can worsen heart problems like heart failure. The inflammation from COVID-19 can damage the heart, making it more difficult to pump blood through the body.
Heart Failure and COVID-19
When someone has COVID-19, it can worsen heart problems like heart failure. The inflammation from COVID-19 can damage the heart, making it more difficult to pump blood through the body.
What to Know About Heart Failure and COVID-19
Heart Failure Symptoms
Each person will experienceheart failure symptomsdifferently. The symptoms can suddenly come on or develop slowly over time. Most people will have shortness of breath and swelling. Heart failure symptoms can include:
Late stages of heart failure can produce the followingsymptoms:
How It Feels to Have Heart Failure
When someone has heart failure, putting into words exactly how it feels can prove difficult. The buildup of fluids in the body and lungs can give someone a bad cough and a swollen stomach and make it hard to breathe.
Heart Failure Stages
There are twoheart failure classificationsystems that a healthcare provider can use to classify the severity of a person’s heart failure.
The New York Heart Association (NYHA) uses a staging system of stages 1 through stages 4. A person’s stage can move forward or backward, based on their symptoms. The stages are:
The American Heart Association (AHA) and American College of Cardiology (ACC) use a differentstaging system. In this system, when a person reaches a certain stage, they cannot move back to a lower stage.
What Causes Heart Failure?
People diagnosed with heart failure typically have or had another heart condition. Having more than one condition can significantly increase the risk of developing heart failure. The conditions that most commonly cause heart failure are:
Other conditions that can cause heart failure are:
How Is Heart Failure Diagnosed?
Physical Exam
A physical exam is one of the first things a healthcare provider will perform during a heart failure evaluation. The exam will include listening to the heart, lungs, and abdomen. The healthcare provider will ask questions that may include health history,family history, and information about lifestyle choices likesmoking, diet, and exercise.
Blood Test
Blood tests can detect changes in the body and may indicate if someone is in heart failure. Abrain natriuretic peptide (BNP)blood test increases with heart failure.
Other blood tests may include electrolytes andcreatinine levels.
Echocardiogram
Anechocardiogram (or echo)is an ultrasound of the heart. It can see how well the heart works, look for thickening of the heart muscle, and measure the ejection fraction.The ejection fraction is a measurement to determine the percentage of blood that leaves the heart with each heartbeat. An average ejection fraction is 50–70%. An ejection fraction of 40% or lower is indicative of heart failure.
Other Testing
A healthcare provider may schedule other testing based on a person’s symptoms and the results of previous tests. Other testing that may be used to diagnose heart failure include:
Heart Failure Treatment
Heart failure treatment will optimize the heart’s ability to pump blood to the lungs and body. The treatment plan will vary from person to person based on the severity of their illness and other conditions they may have.
Lifestyle Changes
When someone has mild to moderate heart failure, lifestyle changes can make a real impact on their daily lives. Lifestyle changes that can slow down the progression of symptoms include:
Medications
Many medications can treat heart failure. Each medication will treat a different symptom (when taken as prescribed).
Left Ventricular Assist Device
An LVAD is typically reserved for people who do not respond to other treatments. It can serve as a “bridge to transplant,” meaning it supports the person until they receive a heart transplant. Or it can work as “destination therapy,” meaning that the person will not receive a heart transplant and will remain on the LVAD for the rest of their life. A person can go home with an LVAD and have a high quality of life.
Heart Transplant
Can You Prevent Heart Failure?
While every case of heart failure cannot be prevented, many steps can be taken to reduce the likelihood of developing it. Ways toprevent heart failureinclude:
Outlook for Heart Failure
Heart failure is a condition that has been and still is widely studied for better treatments and solutions. The current treatment options can improvelife expectancyand quality of life. It’s important to follow a healthcare provider’s guidance and take medications as prescribed.
11 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.American Heart Association.Types of heart failure.Unudurthi SD, Luthra P, Bose RJC, et al.Cardiac inflammation in COVID-19: lessons from heart failure.Life Sciences. 2020;260:118482. doi:10.1016/j.lfs.2020.118482Inamdar AA, Inamdar AC.Heart failure: diagnosis, management and utilization.Journal of Clinical Medicine. 2016;5(7):62. doi:10.3390/jcm5070062UCSF Health.Heart failure signs and symptoms.Johns Hopkins Medicine.Heart failure.American Heart Association.Classes of heart failure.National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.Heart failure diagnosis.American Heart Association.Ejection fraction heart failure measurement.American Heart Association.Lifestyle changes for heart failure.American Heart Association.Devices and surgical devices to treat heart failure.Johns Hopkins Medicine.Congestive heart failure: prevention, treatment and research.
11 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.American Heart Association.Types of heart failure.Unudurthi SD, Luthra P, Bose RJC, et al.Cardiac inflammation in COVID-19: lessons from heart failure.Life Sciences. 2020;260:118482. doi:10.1016/j.lfs.2020.118482Inamdar AA, Inamdar AC.Heart failure: diagnosis, management and utilization.Journal of Clinical Medicine. 2016;5(7):62. doi:10.3390/jcm5070062UCSF Health.Heart failure signs and symptoms.Johns Hopkins Medicine.Heart failure.American Heart Association.Classes of heart failure.National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.Heart failure diagnosis.American Heart Association.Ejection fraction heart failure measurement.American Heart Association.Lifestyle changes for heart failure.American Heart Association.Devices and surgical devices to treat heart failure.Johns Hopkins Medicine.Congestive heart failure: prevention, treatment and research.
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
American Heart Association.Types of heart failure.Unudurthi SD, Luthra P, Bose RJC, et al.Cardiac inflammation in COVID-19: lessons from heart failure.Life Sciences. 2020;260:118482. doi:10.1016/j.lfs.2020.118482Inamdar AA, Inamdar AC.Heart failure: diagnosis, management and utilization.Journal of Clinical Medicine. 2016;5(7):62. doi:10.3390/jcm5070062UCSF Health.Heart failure signs and symptoms.Johns Hopkins Medicine.Heart failure.American Heart Association.Classes of heart failure.National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.Heart failure diagnosis.American Heart Association.Ejection fraction heart failure measurement.American Heart Association.Lifestyle changes for heart failure.American Heart Association.Devices and surgical devices to treat heart failure.Johns Hopkins Medicine.Congestive heart failure: prevention, treatment and research.
American Heart Association.Types of heart failure.
Unudurthi SD, Luthra P, Bose RJC, et al.Cardiac inflammation in COVID-19: lessons from heart failure.Life Sciences. 2020;260:118482. doi:10.1016/j.lfs.2020.118482
Inamdar AA, Inamdar AC.Heart failure: diagnosis, management and utilization.Journal of Clinical Medicine. 2016;5(7):62. doi:10.3390/jcm5070062
UCSF Health.Heart failure signs and symptoms.
Johns Hopkins Medicine.Heart failure.
American Heart Association.Classes of heart failure.
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.Heart failure diagnosis.
American Heart Association.Ejection fraction heart failure measurement.
American Heart Association.Lifestyle changes for heart failure.
American Heart Association.Devices and surgical devices to treat heart failure.
Johns Hopkins Medicine.Congestive heart failure: prevention, treatment and research.
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