What is the full form of CHF?

Introduction

Congestive Heart Failure (CHF) is a medical condition of the heart where it fails to pump blood into the system. The heart is the main pumping organ of the circulatory system of our body. Its main function is to pump blood to all body parts through various arteries.

Congestive heart failure is a type of heart failure in which the heart is unable to perform its function of pumping blood and delivering nutrient-rich oxygenated blood to the cells. Due to this, the person having such a condition feels fatigued, has shortness of breath, and is not able to perform even simple everyday activities like walking, climbing stairs, or carrying a load.

Definition and Overview

Congestive Heart Failure (CHF) is a clinical condition, progressive in nature. It is often misunderstood as a complete stoppage of pumping or heartbeat. But it is a life-long condition in which the heart is not able to fulfill the body’s need for oxygen by improper pumping of the blood to all the body cells.

In CHF, one or both parts of the heart can get affected. If the right part is affected, the heart is unable to pump blood to the lungs to take oxygen from it. If the left part is affected, the heart is unable to pump oxygenated blood to all other body parts. Left- sided heart failure is more common than right-sided because it is either due to too much weakness of the heart muscle to pump the blood or due to too much stiffness or thickness to get relaxed or filled with enough blood.

Symptoms and Causes

The symptoms of CHF depend upon the severity of the condition. They become more prominent with increasing severity. Some of the common symptoms are −

• Shortness of breath

• Fatigue, nausea, weakness, and loss of appetite

• Weight gain due to Fluid retention and swelling or edema at the ankle, abdomen, or lower legs

• Congested lungs

• Difficulty Sleeping while lying flat

• Need to urinate frequently

CHF develops over a long period of time due to damage to the heart muscle because of the following factors −

• Heart attack

• Coronary artery disease

• Cardiomyopathy

• Conditions that can weaken the heart such as high blood pressure, arrhythmia, valve disease, kidney disease, thyroid disease, diabetes, obesity, and lung disease such as COPD.

• Congenital heart defects

Diagnosis and Treatment

To diagnose Congestive Heart Failure, the doctor might ask a few questions related to past medical conditions and symptoms experienced by the patient. To confirm it, the following diagnostic tests are performed −

• Blood test − It includes complete blood count, kidney function test, liver function tests, and level of B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP) hormone released by the heart.

• Electrocardiogram (ECG) − It is used to check the abnormality in heart rhythms (electrical impulses).

• Echocardiogram − It is an ultrasound, used to check the heart structure, motion, or muscle damage.

• Stress Test − It is used to check heart performance under different stress levels.

• Chest X-ray − It is used to see the size of the heart and fluid buildup around the lungs and heart.

• Cardiac catheterization − It is a procedure to check the blockage of Coronary Artery Disease and whether it is a cause of CHF.

• MRI − It takes both still and moving pictures of the heart to see the damage.

The treatment of CHF includes medications to relieve the symptoms and better performance of the heart. The medication includes ACE inhibitors, Beta blockers, Digoxin, Diuretics, ARBs, ARNIs, Heart Pump medications, etc.

In some cases, when medication is not effective, a surgical procedure called Angioplasty can be performed to open blocked arteries, and valve repair surgeries to open and close valves properly.

Management and Prevention

The main aim of managing CHF to decrease the symptoms, hospitalization, and mortality rate associated with it and improve the life’s quality. A combination of various agents is given rather than a single agent to improve the overall effect.

To prevent Congestive Heart Failure and its further worsening, a person should take the following steps −

• Take a well-balanced healthy diet

• Maintain the body

• Avoid or quit smoking, drinking alcohol, or chewing tobacco

• Exercise should be done regularly

• Take the prescribed medicines on time

• Monitor the symptoms carefully and regularly, especially high blood pressure

• Visit or consult your doctor regularly.

Conclusion

Congestive Heart Failure is a serious health condition developed with prolonged damage to the heart like high blood pressure. In this, the pumping of oxygenated blood gets lowered due to inefficient contraction or relaxation of the heart muscle and unable to pump blood. It is caused due to various factors which can affect the heart and if not taken care of properly it can lead to malnutrition, failure of organs like the kidney, and liver, pulmonary hypertension, and breathing problems. It can even lead to sudden cardiac arrest. So it is important to take care of it with prescribed medication and maintain a healthy lifestyle by proper exercising, taking a balanced diet, and having healthy habits.

FAQs

Q1. What is systolic dysfunction?

Ans: Systolic dysfunction is systolic left-sided heart failure in which the heart muscles do not contract efficiently to pump blood through the body due to reduced force. Therefore, there is less oxygenated blood circulation to meet the body’s demands.

Q2. What is diastolic dysfunction?

Ans: Diastolic dysfunction is a type of left-sided heart failure in which left ventricle muscles become stiff and are unable to fill blood properly between the beats. Thereby, resulting in reduced blood flow.

Q3. What is ejection fraction?

Ans: Ejection fraction is a type of diagnostic to measure the amount of blood ejected by blood in each beat. It is used in Congestive Heart failure syndrome to check the presence of systolic dysfunction along with diastolic dysfunction.