Introduction
Congestive heart failure (CHF), often called heart failure, is when the heart becomes weak and cannot maintain blood flow properly. As a result, the blood supply to the body’s tissues decreases, reducing strength and endurance. In addition, when blood circulation is poor, the kidneys cannot eliminate water, salts, and metabolic products from the blood. Moreover, the kidneys tend to increase blood volume by retaining more salts and water. As a result, blood volume increases, creating extra work for an already overloaded heart. My grandfather died of CHF, which is why it is essential for me to study this topic and begin methods of treating the disease.
Description of the Disease
Congestive heart failure occurs when the heart cannot pump the necessary blood because of blocked arteries or after a heart attack. As a result, other organs do not receive enough blood and oxygen (Groenewegen et al., 2020). Congestive heart failure also results in fluid accumulation in the liver, lungs, abdomen, arms, and legs. Moreover, patients with this pathology may have shortness of breath, fatigue, abnormal heart rhythm, swelling of the ankles and legs, cough, sleep problems, weight gain, and lack of appetite (Groenewegen et al., 2020). The disease is usually provoked by an overgrowth of plaque in the arteries but can also be caused by other heart conditions or a heart attack.
Furthermore, depending on what causes heart failure, it can develop slowly over many years or quickly. At first, signs of the disease appear only during moments of physical activity but later begin to occur while resting too. Moreover, the problem may affect the left or right side of the heart or both at once (Groenewegen et al., 2020). Heart failure is a serious disease characterized, as a rule, by a chronic course. Nevertheless, adequate therapy can improve the quality of life by alleviating the symptoms of the disease.
Treatment
Considering the disease’s seriousness, congestive heart failure treatment should begin as early as possible. The risk of developing heart failure can be reduced with simple protective measures (Groenewegen et al., 2020). Secondary prevention can help keep your heart healthy if the condition has already been diagnosed. First, the doctor prescribes a non-medicamental therapy, which includes: constant control of body weight, restriction of loads, a special set of workouts, and regulation of fluid intake. In addition, dietary enrichment with additional sources of vitamins and micronutrients is needed to maintain a healthy heart (Groenewegen et al., 2020). The primary cardiac micronutrients are potassium and magnesium; they ensure the regular contractile activity of the heart, are responsible for myocardial nutrition, and maintain the elasticity of blood vessels.
In addition, medication is administered, including the use of cardiac glycosides, fluid-eliminating drugs, and the use of arrhythmia-preventive agents. In this list, the main drugs are glycosides, which are necessary to maintain the heart’s pumping function (Groenewegen et al., 2020). Moreover, considering the importance of these drugs, they are prescribed permanently. Furthermore, along with treating congestive manifestations in the heart, the therapy of the disease that led to the development of this disease is carried out. Obligatory is the use of drugs, the action aimed at maintaining the work of the heart (Groenewegen et al., 2020). However, if drug therapy does not give positive results, the only way out may be organ transplantation. Although, in some cases, chronic congestive heart failure can be corrected by surgical correction of the primary disease.
Conclusion
Hence, congestive heart failure is a severe abnormality of the functioning of a significant human organ. It is characterized by the inability of the heart muscles to pump the right amount of blood required for the normal functioning of the whole body. Moreover, to treat heart failure, it is essential to identify the causes that led to the development of such a severe disease. Then, a list of non-medicinal measures is compiled to stabilize the overall condition.
Reference
Groenewegen, A., Rutten, F. H., Mosterd, A., & Hoes, A. W. (2020). Epidemiology of heart failure. European Journal of Heart Failure, 22(8), 1342-1356. Web.