Heart failure sounds scary, and honestly, it is. It can take one’s life if not treated in time. Understanding the types of heart failure can make a huge difference in treating it.
With the right knowledge and care, many people live well with it. Heart failure doesn’t mean your heart has stopped working; it just means it isn’t pumping blood as effectively as it should be.
Let’s learn more about different types of heart failure, their symptoms and treatment. This will help you improve the quality of life.
Types of Heart Failure
There are several kinds of heart failure, each of which affects the heart’s pumping ability in different ways. Here is the list of heart failures.
1- Left-sided Heart Failure
This is among the most common types of heart failure and happens when the left side of the heart can’t pump blood properly to the rest of the body. Blood starts backing up into the lungs and can not provide adequate oxygen.
Symptoms
- Shortness of breath
- Fatigue
- Cough or wheezing
Treatment
- Check with the doctor
- Reduce salt
- Stay active
2- Right-sided Heart Failure
This often develops as a result of left-sided heart failure. In this type, the heart struggles to pump blood to the lungs, causing fluid to build up in the body.
Symptoms
- Swelling in legs, ankles, and feet
- Bloating
- Sudden weight gain
- Frequent urination
Treatment
- Reduce salt intake
- Track weight
3- Congestive Heart Failure
Among the types of heart failure, congestive heart failure can affect either side or both. Congestive heart failure causes a backup of blood in your veins, which leads to inflammation of tissues known as oedema.
Symptoms
- Breathlessness
- Swelling
- Fatigue
- Feeling of heaviness
Treatment
- Medication
- Lifestyle adjustment
- Valve repair
- Surgery
4- Systolic Heart Failure
Systolic heart failure is one of the types of heart failure in which the muscles of the left ventricle are weakened and cannot contract properly. As a result, the heart cannot pump enough blood to meet the body’s needs.
Symptoms
- Fatigue and weakness
- Swelling in legs, ankles and feet
- Breath shortness
- Irregular or rapid heartbeat
- Persistent cough
- Sudden weight gain
Treatment
- Monitor fluid intake
- Follow a healthy lifestyle
- Reduce salt intake
- Maintain a healthy weight
- Medications
5- Diastolic Heart Failure
When discussing the types of heart failure, diastolic heart failure is the most serious one. In this, the ventricular muscles become stiff and are unable to relax properly. As a result, the heart is unable to fill with blood properly between beats, leading to reduced blood circulation throughout the body.
Symptoms
- Trouble breathing
- Lack of energy
- Inflammation
- Fast heartbeat
- Weight gain
Treatment
- Manage conditions like high blood pressure, diabetes, and obesity
- Maintain healthy habits
- Limit salt intake
- Exercise regularly
Most Common Cause of Heart Failure
Heart failure occurs when the heart muscles don’t pump blood properly, and it happens when the heart muscles are weakened, damaged, or stiff.
The following conditions can cause types of heart failure.
- Coronary artery disease and heart attack.
- High blood pressure
- Heart valve disease
- Inflammation of the heart muscles
- Irregular heart rhythms
- Heart conditions, such as a congenital heart defect
- Other health problems like HIV infection, an underactive thyroid or a buildup of iron or protein.
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How to Prevent Heart Failure?
Heart failure is something that can be prevented, but with lifestyle changes. Good habits like regular exercise, healthy eating, and moderate smoking & consumption of alcohol can make a huge difference in one’s health.
Other things that you need to incorporate are regular body checkups, timely blood sugar and pressure checkups, and stick to moderate sugar and salt intake.
Small changes in your lifestyle can go a long way. Following these things can help one to avoid causing different kinds of heart failure.
With this, don’t ignore early warning signs like shortness of breath and an irregular heartbeat, as they can be serious.
In the end, take care of yourself and your heart because a healthy heart is a healthy body.
