Good for the elderly
Although there have been recent improvements in congestive heart failure treatment, researchers say the prognosis for people with the disease is still bleak, with about 50% having an average life expectancy of less than five years . For those with advanced forms of heart failure, nearly 90% die within one year.
Warning signs of worsening heart failure Sudden weight gain (2–3 pounds in one day or 5 or more pounds in one week) Extra swelling in the feet or ankles. Swelling or pain in the abdomen. Shortness of breath not related to exercise.
There are four stages of heart failure (Stage A, B, C and D). The stages range from “high risk of developing heart failure” to “advanced heart failure,” and provide treatment plans.
Heart failure signs and symptoms may include: Shortness of breath ( dyspnea ) when you exert yourself or when you lie down. Fatigue and weakness . Swelling (edema) in your legs, ankles and feet. Rapid or irregular heartbeat. Reduced ability to exercise. Persistent cough or wheezing with white or pink blood-tinged phlegm.
The symptoms of end -stage congestive heart failure include dyspnea, chronic cough or wheezing, edema, nausea or lack of appetite, a high heart rate, and confusion or impaired thinking. Learn about the hospice eligibility requirements for end -stage heart failure .
Approximately 90% of heart failure patients die from cardiovascular causes. Fifty per cent die from progressive heart failure , and the remainder die suddenly from arrhythmias and ischaemic events.
Patients are considered to be in the terminal end stage of heart disease when they have a life expectancy of six months or less. Only a doctor can make a clinical determination of congestive heart failure life expectancy.
While advancements have been made, according to a 2008 study, 50% of patients will have an average life expectancy of five years . For those with advanced heart failure , up to 90 % will pass away within one year .
In a recent study, it was reported that patients hospitalized with moderate systolic heart failure faced a median expected survival time of 2.4 years if they were aged 71 to 80 years and 1.4 years if they were aged 80 years or more. In patients with more advanced systolic dysfunction, life expectancy was even shorter.
You may experience a persistent cough or wheezing (a whistling sound in the lungs or laboured breathing) due to your heart failure . The wheezing is similar to asthma but has a different cause in heart failure .
While most people associate coughing as a common symptom that accompanies lung or respiratory issues, its connection to heart failure often goes unnoticed. This is called a cardiac cough , and it often happens to those with congestive heart failure (CHF).
1 Stage D heart failure describes advanced progression of the heart failure syndrome charac- terized by structural abnormalities of the heart and severe resting symptoms despite optimal medical, surgical, and de- vice therapy. The terms ” stage D ” and ”advanced” are used interchangeably in the present document.
Hydralazine and nitrates (Apresoline, Nitrobid, Imdur, Isordil) Hydralazine and nitrates are often used together to treat heart failure . They dilate blood vessels so it’s easier for your heart to receive and pump blood.
The current in-hospital treatment for CHF involves removal of excess fluid with diuretic medication and/or ultrafiltration in which a machine bypasses the kidneys and filters water and salt from the body. However, these treatments can have unwanted side effects such as low blood pressure and worsening kidney function.
But chronic congestive heart failure brings a slower, more painful death . When the weakened heart cannot pump out all the blood inside it, the blood backs up into veins and leaks through small blood vessels; tissues swell painfully .