The phrase "heart failure" implies that the heart is completely nonfunctional and has no hope for recovery. Heart failure occurs when the heart is unable to pump blood effectively. Your cells rely on oxygen and blood nutrients, which your heart pumps throughout your body.

When cells receive adequate fuel, the body returns to normal operation. In patients with heart failure, the weaker heart cannot pump enough blood to the body's tissues and organs. This causes drowsiness, shortness of breath, and, in some cases, a cough. Commonplace actions like strolling, navigating stairs, and lugging around groceries might become arduous.

How The Heart Normally Works

A typical, healthy heart is a powerful pump around the size of a fist. It works tirelessly to circulate blood throughout the body. There is two right and two left chambers in the heart, respectively.

• Atriums, the two upper chambers of the heart
• Two lower chambers called ventricles

Oxygen-poor blood is sucked into the right atrium and pumped to the right ventricle, which is finally oxygenated in the lungs. The lungs are the source of oxygen, and the left atrium and left ventricle are responsible for pumping the oxygenated blood to the rest of the body. The heart's four chambers contract in a finely coordinated sequence to propel blood to the lungs and throughout the body's tissues.

What Exactly Is Heart Failure?

Heart failure is a gradual, chronic illness in which the heart muscle cannot pump enough blood to fulfil the body's demands for blood and oxygen. The heart is failing because it is overworked.

Initially, the heart attempts to compensate by:

Enlarging

The heart expands so it may contract with greater force, allowing it to meet the increased demand for blood circulation. This leads to cardiac enlargement over time.

Gaining Muscle

The heart's contracting cells grow in size, causing the muscle to thicken. The heart can pump with greater force, at least at first.

Pumping Faster

The output of the heart is boosted as a result.

The body also makes various attempts to make up for it:

• Blood vessel constriction compensates for the heart's diminished output by maintaining constant blood pressure.
• The heart and brain get less blood because the body prioritizes them.

These band-aid solutions hide the symptoms of heart failure but do little to treat the underlying cause. Without restoring normal heart function, heart failure will persist and worsen. At some point, a person's heart and body will give up, and they will start to feel tired, have trouble breathing, or have other symptoms that would normally drive them to see a doctor.

Symptoms

Several signs and symptoms may indicate heart failure. The most typical signs include:

• respiratory problems, including shortness of breath
• feelings of fatigue and weariness
• a collection of fluid around the vaginal region or abdomen, or the lower extremities, more specifically the feet and ankles (belly)

Dry cough, fast heart rate, frequent urination throughout the night, and inability to focus are potential manifestations. An additional factor is a fluid retention, which can cause people to gain weight.

However, there may be other reasons why you're experiencing similar signs and symptoms. Many persons diagnosed with heart failure often suffer from additional health issues. Therefore, early heart failure symptoms might be challenging to spot.

Causes

Most cases of heart failure result from complications of another condition that have already harmed the heart muscle or blood vessels. The most typical reasons are as follows:

• Diseases of the coronary arteries (CAD)
• Infarction of the heart
• Hypertension

Too little oxygen-rich blood reaches the heart in coronary artery disease (CAD), also known as coronary heart disease (CHD). Heart failure, caused by the inadequate blood supply to the heart, is a possible outcome. A heart attack occurs when one of these veins is unexpectedly stopped, cutting off blood supply to a portion of the heart and causing muscle tissue to die.

Effects

If you have advanced heart failure, you may find engaging in even the most basic daily tasks difficult or impossible. Abnormal heart rhythms, pneumonia, and slow wound healing in the lower legs are just a few of the other issues it might bring.

When fluid accumulates unexpectedly in the lungs, it can cause choking spells and the production of frothy sputum when coughing.

Breathing can become extremely laboured if fluid builds up significantly between the ribs and the lungs. Fluid buildup in the liver or abdomen can also lead to nausea, vomiting, lack of appetite, and digestive issues.