What Are Symptoms of Advanced Congestive Heart Failure?

What are symptoms of advanced congestive heart failure? There are several symptoms to be aware of, some of which can be mistaken for other things. If you are exhibiting any of the symptoms of advanced congestive heart failure, you need to see a physician immediately.

The symptoms of advanced congestive heart failure are:

• Weakness
• Light headed
• Dizziness
• Heart beating quickly when at rest
• Being easily fatigued
• An inability to tolerate any degree of activity
• Having skin that is cool, pale, or sweaty
• Having skin with a blue-grey coloring or appearance
• Swelling or edema in the organs, abdomen, legs, or lungs
• Weight gain
• Nausea
• Poor appetite

Advanced Congestive Heart Failure

A person who has congestive heart failure has a heart that is not able to function properly.

• This means the heart is weak and does not pump blood efficiently throughout the body.
• Heart failure can range in its degree of severity from moderate to advanced.
• The earlier heart failure is detected the more treatable the disease is.

Causes and Diagnosis of Heart Failure

There are many factors that can cause heart failure.

• Some of these factors include a lack of diet and exercise. 
• Family history plays a part in whether or not someone is susceptible to heart failure. If someone in your family has suffered from the disease, you are more at risk of suffering from it yourself. This is why it is important to be as thorough as possible when sharing your family history with your doctor.

There are also a number of ways someone can be diagnosed with heart failure. 

• Anyone who is susceptible to congestive heart failure will be further tested using appropriate medical tools to diagnose the condition and the severity of the condition. These tools include an electrocardiogram (ECG), an echocardiogram, a stress test, a heart catheterization (PTCA), a CT scan, or an MRI.

Treatment for Congestive Heart Failure

In addition to knowing what the symptoms of congestive heart failure are, you may also be interested in learning how it is treated once you are diagnosed:

• After being diagnosed by one of these testing methods, the doctor will review the results with you and determine the severity of your condition.
• There are currently four ways that congestive heart failure is classified. You will either be diagnosed with Class I, Class II, Class III, or Class IV heart failure.
• Those having advanced congestive heart failure are automatically given a Class IV rating meaning that they have symptoms of congestive heart failure while at rest.
• There are also four stages within each classification system determined to be Stage A, Stage B, Stage C, or Stage D. Those with advanced congestive heart failure are determined to be Stage D, defined as advanced heart disease and severely symptomatic or refractory heart failure. This classification and staged system helps doctors determine the best course of treatment for each patient based on the degree of their condition.
• The treatment of congestive heart failure depends highly on the class and stage you are determined to fall in. Those who are able to catch the disease early can be treated with simple changes to diet and exercise in order to reverse or slow the progression of the disease. Those with advanced congestive heart failure are often treated in similar ways, but reversal and reduction in progression are often inevitable at that stage. 

So, now you know what the symptoms of advanced congestive heart failure are, as well as some risk factors and treatment methods.