Heart failure: Things to know

Almost everyone knows heart failure, but few people know it well. This is one of the reasons why people over 65 are hospitalized and cause 35,000 deaths every year in France.

What is heart failure?

Heart (Photo: TTO)

The heart is no longer strong to effectively push blood into the arteries to nourish body tissues to help maintain normal functioning. The heart is seen as a pump to pump blood throughout the body and heart failure when the pump no longer works well because the heart muscle (especially the left ventricle) is tired.

We can see that many heart diseases make the contractile function weaken (mainly as a result of a heart attack). High blood pressure causes the heart to be under pressure, which is also the main cause of heart failure.

Who is prone to heart failure?

Heart failure usually occurs in people over 65 who have high blood pressure, lose their balance for years, factors that can lead to cardiovascular disease such as diabetes and high blood cholesterol. Often they have had a heart attack. It is also noted that very young people have heart disease. When they are victims of a heart attack or a heart-related virus infection. Also be careful with alcohol abuse, which is very harmful to health.

Signs need to be alerted

Shortness of breath due to exertion: Climbing the stairs or running, requires extra effort. Blood must be pumped 4 times more than usual. So the heart is no longer able to take on its role. The result: congestion and difficulty breathing.

Shortness of breath at night: In a long position, fluid builds up in the lungs. Serious cases of breathing problems can disrupt sleep.

Abnormal fatigue: The tissue of the body is no longer provided with adequate blood and oxygen, thereby making the body physically and mentally tired throughout the day.

Edema under the ankle: Fluid in the body is no longer completely discharged by the kidneys and most of it accumulates in the lower legs.

Frequent fast heartbeat: The heart is forced to beat faster to ensure blood flow.

When these signs are present, the first thing is to not hesitate, see a cardiologist to have an echocardiogram. Early diagnosis of heart failure to avoid complications when the disease is detected during acute pulmonary edema. If necessary, emergency hospitalization.

What should people with heart failure do?

In addition to taking medication, people with heart failure must maintain a healthy life accordingly.

Reduce the amount of salt in the diet:

Eating salty too easily is punctured. It is best to limit salt intake from 4-6g per day (compared to 12g as normal people), should avoid canned food, cold prepared processed meat, industrial sauces . Use only Use mineral water containing less than 100mg of sodium per liter.

Precautions

- Keeping the heart: First of all adhere to good habits of healthy life.

- Stop smoking: Quitting smoking is never late for smokers.

- Be alert when you gain weight quickly: Force your heart to work too hard.

- Monitor choleterol in the blood: Eat lots of vegetables and foods low in lipids.

- Keep your blood pressure and diabetes balanced: Follow the treatment diligently.

- Proper treatment of cardiovascular disease: Take the right dose and go to the doctor regularly.

Marking on a salt jar is common and even for salt that mixes potassium (potassium), ingesting will have many disastrous consequences.

Exercise regularly: The problem is not a marathon! Cardiologists recommend that we walk or swim 30 minutes a day, at least three sessions a week. First stop the vicious cycle of fatigue and shortness of breath that gradually loses the homeostasis and causes muscle tone to lose. Next, for the sake of practice is real: arterial strength is normal and cardiovascular problems decrease.

Retraining must be done sequentially with professional support (the center re-adapts to the heart, physiotherapists for movement).

Follow the instructions for medication use:

The treatment of heart failure is quite long, because it must be combined with 3 drugs (including diuretics) but it is necessary to prevent abnormal changes in the disease. Regular monitoring of the state of heart disease needs to be monitored accordingly.

Doctor DANG MINH TRI