How to Spot Symptoms of Advanced Congestive Heart Failure
Congestive heart failure occurs when the heart is unable to pump blood efficiently to the rest of the body. Knowing the signs and symptoms to look for can help you identify whether you are suffering from congestive heart failure and increase your chances for survival.
Symptoms
- Notice if you are experiencing any significant swelling in the legs and ankles, which can be caused by blood pooling in the extremities as the heart fails to pump blood efficiently. You may also notice swelling in other areas of the body, such as the stomach.
- Pay attention to any abnormal heartbeats. Congestive heart failure may cause a rapid heartbeat, skipped heartbeats or heart palpitations.
- Watch for shortness of breath. While you may begin experiencing shortness of breath during periods of physical activity, it becomes increasingly worse as congestive heart failure progresses. In advanced congestive heart failure, you may feel short of breath while you are simply sitting or laying down.
- Pay attention to your mental state. If you are having a hard time concentrating on tasks or become confused easily, these may be signs of congestive heart failure. These symptoms, along with feelings of dizziness and fatigue, may become increasingly worse as the heart fails to pump blood and transport oxygen to all of the organs in the body.
- Notice if you have been experiencing a chronic cough that will not go away, which can be caused by blood pooling in the lungs as congestive heart failure progresses.
- Look for any unusual gastrointestinal symptoms that you are not used to, such as nausea, indigestion or lack of appetite, which may be caused by congestive heart failure.
Tips
- Keep track of any unusual symptoms or feelings of discomfort that you are experiencing, and make an appointment with your health care provider to determine what is causing them.
- Use a measuring tape to measure your ankles if they are swollen, and keep track of the measurements to determine if it is getting worse.