Possible causes of heart failure

This is an automatically translated article.

The article was professionally consulted by Specialist Doctor II Nguyen Quoc Viet - Department of Medical Examination & Internal Medicine - Vinmec Danang International General Hospital. The doctor has more than 20 years of experience in the examination and treatment of cardiovascular diseases and Interventional Cardiology.

1. Causes of heart failure

Heart failure often develops after another medical condition damages or weakens the heart.
In some cases of heart failure, your heart muscle can be damaged and weakened, the ventricles are dilated to the point where the heart cannot contract to effectively eject blood throughout the body. Over time, the heart is unable to meet the body's demands for daily activities.
Ejection fraction (EF) is an important indicator of how well the heart is pumping and is used to help classify heart failure and guide treatment. Normally, the ejection fraction is 55% or higher - meaning that more than half of the blood filling the ventricles is pumped out with each beat.
Heart failure can occur on the left side (left ventricle), right side (right ventricle), or both sides of the heart. Usually, heart failure usually starts in the left side, especially the left ventricle because this is the heart's main pumping chamber. Accordingly, the causes of heart failure can be listed as:
Coronary artery disease and heart attack: Coronary artery disease is very common and is the most common cause of heart failure. This disease is the result of fatty deposits that form plaques on the artery walls and decrease the lumen volume, reducing blood flow through the narrowing and possibly leading to a heart attack. High blood pressure: If blood pressure is high, the heart has to work harder than it should to circulate blood throughout the body. Over time, this extra exertion can cause the heart muscle to stiffen or become too weak to pump blood efficiently.

Heart valve disease: The heart valve is responsible for keeping blood flowing in the proper direction through the heart. If the valve is damaged due to a birth defect, coronary artery disease, or a heart infection, it causes the heart to work harder, which can weaken the heart over time. Myocardial hypertrophy has many causes including certain diseases, infections, alcohol abuse, and the toxic effects of drugs such as cocaine or certain chemotherapy drugs. Genetic factors may also play a role in myocardial hypertrophy. Myocarditis is caused by a virus and can lead to left-sided heart failure. Congenital heart defects: If the heart and its chambers or heart valves are not formed correctly during fetal development, causing other healthy parts of the heart to work harder to pump blood around the body can, therefore, lead to heart failure. Arrhythmia: An irregular heart rhythm can cause a person's heart to beat too fast, making it work harder than normal. Other diseases such as diabetes, HIV, hyperthyroidism, hypothyroidism or iron overload or tissue amyloidosis can also contribute to heart failure. Causes of acute heart failure include viruses that attack the heart muscle, severe infections, allergic reactions, lung diseases such as blood clots in the lungs, medication use, or any illness that affects the entire body.

2. Risk factors for heart failure

A single risk factor can be enough to cause heart failure, but some people need a combination of risk factors to develop heart failure. Risk factors include:
High blood pressure makes the heart work harder. Coronary artery disease. Narrowed arteries can restrict the heart's supply of oxygen-rich blood to the body, leading to weakened heart muscle. Heart attack. A heart attack is a disease of the coronary arteries that occurs suddenly. Diabetes. Having diabetes increases your risk of high blood pressure and coronary artery disease. Certain diabetes medications. Diabetes medications such as rosiglitazone (Avandia) and pioglitazone (Actos) have been found in studies to increase the risk of heart failure in some people with diabetes. Even so, patients should not stop taking these medications. If you are taking these medications, you should talk to your doctor about your own risk factors for cardiovascular disease and whether any changes need to be made.

Some drugs. Some medications can lead to heart failure or other heart problems such as nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs); certain anesthetic drugs; certain antiarrhythmic drugs; certain medicines used to treat high blood pressure, cancer, blood diseases, neurological disease, mental illness, lung disease, urinary disease, inflammation, and infection; and other prescription and non-prescription drugs. Patients should not stop taking any medication on their own. If you have questions about your current medications, discuss them with your doctor before making any changes. Sleep apnea. Not being able to breathe properly during sleep at night leads to low blood oxygen levels and an increased risk of cardiac arrhythmias. Both of these problems can lead to heart failure. Congenital heart defects Open heart disease Viral infections may have damaged the heart muscle Alcohol abuse Tobacco smoking Obesity . Heart arrhythmia Heart failure is a dangerous disease and can leave many complications for the body, so early examination to find out the cause is very important.
To determine the status of heart failure, the degree of heart failure, the cause of heart failure and associated diseases, patients can choose to use the Heart Failure Checkup Package at Vinmec.
When choosing to use the Heart Failure examination package at Vinmec International General Hospital, customers will receive a specialist examination of Cardiology, complete blood and urine analysis, quantification and measurement of the activity of substances in the blood. , electrocardiogram, routine and stress echocardiography, straight chest x-ray, among other services.

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