Congestive Heart Failure Case Study

The condition that I researched is Congestive Heart Failure. Most people think that is when the heart completely stops working; however, that is not the case. Congestive Heart Failure is when the heart's amount of power used for pumping is weaker than normal. Blood travels through the body and heart at a slower rate, and the pressure in the heart greatly increases. Since there is so much pressure the heart cant pump enough oxygen and nutrients to fulfill the body's needs. Usually the chambers of the heart react to this by stretching to hold more blood to pump through the body or they become stiff and thickened. This helps keep blood moving for the time being; although, eventually the walls of the heart will weaken and not be able to pump blood as easily. The kidneys react to this by retaining salt and fluid. If fluid gets built up in any organs of the

According to Tortora some of them include: coronary artery disease, myocardial infarctions, long-term high blood pressure, congenital defects, heart attacks, and conditions that overwork the heart. (Tortora, 2014, pg.724) Signs and symptoms greatly vary from person to person. They may remain constant or come and go. Some of the symptoms include congested lungs and fluid/water retention. Some people also may experience dizziness, fatigue, and weakness due to less blood flowing to their major organs. Another sign is a rapid or irregular heartbeat. People may experience all of these signs at once or maybe just one at a time. (Heart Failure Symptoms, 1998) Congestive heart failure is diagnosed through a series of questions asked by your doctor and through a physical exam. If there is any indication that you may have heart failure then more tests will be done to determine the cause and severity. Some of these tests include: blood tests, chest x-rays, echo-cardiograms, cardiac catheterization, and stress tests. (Congestive Heart Failure, WebMd,