Congestive heart failure

[chevy man]

How is this diagnosed???

[chevy man]

oh ok is bnp and triponin related?

[Brooke_38]

Hello...

Just wanted to shed some light on what CHF actually means.

The heart, in a normal and healthy state, pushes blood out through the arteries, and pulls blood in it from the veins. The greatest pressure is found on the arterial side. While on the venous side the pressure is minimal. The greater volume of blood builds up on the venous side, waiting to be pumped back through.

When the heart is failing to function up to a certain level of efficiency, there is a buildup on the venous side in excess of what the heart can draw in. At some point, there is seeping  from this buildup (in the form of  fluids) out of the vascular system into organs and body tissues. This is the congestion that is referred to in congestive heart failure. Location of the congestion varies, and can be an indication of where the defect of the heart lies.

BNP (brain natriuretic peptide) test measures the amount of the BNP hormone in your blood. BNP is made by your heart and indicates how well your heart is working.

It is possible that your Dr ran this blood test. In light of all the cardiac tests that you mention having had and them revealing no indication that your problems are related to your heart, your Dr may not have done the test because there was no reason to.

[chevy man]

acute episodes of CHF ?? how does that work? i have had every cardiac test known to man i wonder if they did such a test?

[grendslori]

For the acute episodes of CHF, the BNP blood test is very accurate at diagnosing CHF.

[chevy man]

thanks i have been told i'm ok but sometimes when i lie down its like my heart starts pounding the hr is still normal(60-100) but the beats are soo strong and it has me a lil worried  

[Jerry_NJ]

Thanks Brook, I always thought shortness of breath was a "hallmark" of (the onset?) of CHF.
Maybe it is one of the more technical terms quoted from the Framingham Heart Study.

Not an argument, just clarification/question.   I suffer from SOB, but in my case it is related to AFib and poor condition.  I have not been up to past NSR exercise standards.

I also wonder about the use of the term CHF.   The words literally mean the heart failed, right?  Yet it seems to be used to describe a condition, so maybe CHF is either a condition one can survive as well as the failure/death of the heart.

Still learning, the above is not posted to provide any answers, please don't read it that way.

[Brooke_38]

Hello...

The following is a reference from the Framingham Heart Study, a world renowned study of heart disease.

Diagnosis of CHF requires the simultaneous presence of at least 2 major criteria or 1 major criterion in conjunction with 2 minor criteria.

Major criteria:

·        Paroxysmal nocturnal dyspnea

·        Neck vein distention

·        Rales

·        Radiographic cardiomegaly (increasing heart size on chest radiography)

·        Acute pulmonary edema

·        S3 gallop

·        Increased central venous pressure (>16 cm H2O at right atrium)

·        Hepatojugular reflux

·        Weight loss  >4.5 kg in 5 days in response to treatment



Minor criteria:

·        Bilateral ankle edema

·        Nocturnal cough

·        Dyspnea on ordinary exertion

·        Hepatomegaly

·        Pleural effusion

·        Decrease in vital capacity by one third from maximum recorded

·        Tachycardia (heart rate>120 beats/min.)

Minor criteria are acceptable only if they can not be attributed to another medical condition (such as pulmonary hypertension, chronic lung disease, cirrhosis, ascites, or the nephrotic syndrome).

The Framingham Heart Study criteria are 100% sensitive and 78% specific for identifying persons with definite congestive heart failure.