Managing Stages of Heart Failure

If proper care and teamwork are followed, the stages of heart failure would not be able to hold back a person from carrying out their daily activities and also those things that they enjoy doing the most.

It all depends how healthy the heart is, does the prospective patient know how to manage the stages of heart failure, how often does one visit the cardiologist and follows the treatment as per the given instructions.

Here are some tips to manage five major symptoms during the stages of heart failure:

1. Difficulty in Breathing - If breathlessness is seen as a potential symptom, then the patient should be arranged an oxygen facility at home in times of dire need. Doctors recommend nasal cannulas so that the patient finds it less difficult to drink, eat and talk while using oxygen. It also avoids them to feel smothered by the mask. The dosage of oxygen should be suggested strictly by the doctor; usually a low dose (31) is required for longer periods. If the patient has experienced severe dyspnoea and a feeling of drowning in pulmonary edema in the past during acute left ventricular failure, they will often fear that it could happen again, and this can prevent relaxation and sleep.

2. Fatigue - This fatigue linked with a heart failure can be an overwhelming event. So, the patient and their families need to be informed well in advance about this gradual drop in the energy. Another thing to be noted is that medications like beta blockers add to the fatigue. It may prove really difficult for the patients to push, pull or lift things i.e. activities that use the upper body. So, the patient should be least stressed as much as possible. Other measures may include shifting the bed from a higher floor to the ground one, using wheelchair for commuting, using back rest, etc.

3. Bad Kidneys - The patient's renal function start worsening with the characteristic low blood pressure. Therefore, in such a case, diuretics become essential. But at the same time the need to keep a check on the kidney functions hold less importance, so, the need for conducting blood tests should be avoided.

4. Changes in Personality - People suffering from the risk of heart failure may also face blues and events of chronic anxiety. If one has been diagnosed with depression, the intake of specific serotonin reuptake inhibitors are said to be more useful than tricyclic antidepressants. The latter are infamous to cause arrhythmias leading to sudden death.

5. Sleeping Disorders- One of the most common symptoms of sleeping disorder in a heart patient is leg jerking which may cause the patient to have sleepless nights or disturbing sleeping patterns. Quinine and baclofen are helpful when it comes to these leg cramps. The patient may find it difficult to fall asleep at might in bed while it is dark and quiet around. On the other hand, one may find it unnerving to doze off or even rest during daytime with people around. To induce sound sleep and provide relaxation, zopiclone and diamorphine (2.5 mg) can be administered respectively.

Hope this information about handling the stages of heart failure by knowing about the most important symptoms of heart failure proved to be helpful. Here's wishing happy and healthy life for your heart!