How to tell heart failure

[Tay99]

How do you know if you have heart failure what are early symptoms of it

[MichaelJH Heart Star]

Heart failure has many causes and many possible symptoms which can include breathlessness, oedema and tiredness. However all the symptoms can be caused by other reasons. One condition that can cause all three is morbid obesity.

Start by reading the BHF infirmation:

bhf.org.uk/informationsuppo...

You can then follow up with more specific questions.

[Hidden]

I was diagnosed with heart failure, 37%, back in Jan 2019 after feeling faint at doctors 6 weeks earlier. I have been experiencing breathless, tingling in left arm and chest pain since 2008 and doctors said it was NCCP - Non Cardiac Chest Pain and anxiety. I didn't have an ECG until I felt faint that time and didn't see a cardiac consultant until June 2019.

I should have pressed my GP to see a cardiac doctor earlier and then perhaps I would not have ended up with a pacemaker now. Unfortunately I come from a generation that didn't question a doctor as trusted they knew my body better than I did.

[scotsrish in reply to Hidden]

Absolutely Meenzer i too knew something was wrong a couple of years before but was given the gold star and all is good from the GP and the Internest. In hind site they told me what i wanted to hear so i ignored everything else by blaming it on stress, lack of sleep, getting older yadda yadda. Never again.

[Tay99]

That's awfull why on earth dont they just run a couple of tests,maybe we should insist everything is always put down to stress with doctors or anixety.

[FeetheBookworm]

I had no idea I had heart failure when diagnosed just over 3 yrs ago. I had trouble lying down flat on my back to sleep and also by the end I sounded like a frog when breathing and could barely walk. I kept getting fluid in my mouth if I lay flat and needed 3 pillows when lying down.

I was away in the Caribbean on holiday and I don’t think the humidity in the air helped. On the flight home the BA steward had me on oxygen all the way to the UK. I rang my surgery when we got home and got an emergency app. Was v throughly checked out by one of the GP’s and packed off to A& immediately. Was told I couldn’t drive and had to call my husband for collect me.

3 and a bit years on I am no longer seen by the HF clinic Or my HF nurse m and now on GP care, which is annual blood test.

[scotsrish in reply to FeetheBookworm]

What did you have done?

[FeetheBookworm in reply to scotsrish]

I was given quite a few fluid tablets and had to measure my urine output. No beds available in Cardiology so spent first 3 nights in a general ward with the A&E doctor who had looked after me checking on me every morning and kicking off as to why I hadn’t been moved.

They did an ECG, a CTScan and X-ray of my lungs and was given 2 fluid tablets to take and had to measure how much liquid was coming out. I lost the best part a stone in weight during the first couple of nights I was in so shows you how much fluid had built up. They diagnosed the HF that night. I was allocated a Heart Failure nurse upon discharge and saw her weekly for some time, and sent home with BHF HF bible which was invaluable. Blood tests and ECG each time I saw anyone. Prescribed 2 fluid tablets, Bisoprol, Ivabradine & Losarton daily. Within 6 wks got dizzy spells and taken off one of the fluid tablets. Had an Angiogram a month later. All clear. About 6 months later (after many cancellations) I had an ICD put in. Saw the HF nurse regularly and HF consultant bi-annually until end of last year when I was discharged to GP care. Have annual blood test and BP check with one of the nurses.

Am now under the care of Harefield as volunteered for genetic testing with them when HF consultant suggested it.

Hope this helps.

Fiona

[Fenlotted]

Breathlessness- couldn’t walk far - couldn’t lie down to sleep & felt that I needed to be either stood up or sat up so that I could breath

[Prada47]

This is an easy test but not carried out in every Hospital.

BNP test for congestive heart failure

A BNP test detects a rise in BNP, which indicates heart failure. Your doctor may recommend this test if you have symptoms of heart failure, such as shortness of breath. Early diagnosis of heart failure can make sure that you get quick and effective treatment to prevent further complications of CHF.

Taken from internet but only because I know about it !!

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