Heart Failure is a commonly seen condition amongst our aging population. In spite of advanced therapeutic science, incidence rates continue to increase. Life expectancy of patients with Heart Failure can be improved with lifestyle changes and compliance with their treatment plan. Mumbai-based cardiologist, Dr Nihar Mehta explains Heart Failure comprehensively.
What are the symptoms or signs of heart failure?
The main symptom of heart failure is shortness of breath. Often it is a feeling of choking or discomfort in breathing. An important symptom is that the breathlessness is more in lying down posture and is often relieved in sitting up position. This is occasionally accompanied with coughing (usually with minimal sputum) and rarely with blood tinged frothy cough.
Often patients have subtle signs to start with such as fatigue and tiredness while doing regular daily activities or swelling in the feet or loss of appetite. Some patients rapidly gain weight due to fluid accumulation in the body.
In more advanced stages, there can be fluid accumulation in the abdomen and severe breathlessness with air hunger or gasping for air.
Some patient with weak hearts may have heart arrhythmias (heart beating too fast) which can make them prone to fainting or even sudden death.
Changed
16/Mar/2025
Community
Condition
