Congestive Heart Failure

Our Approach

Our heart care team at Franciscan Health collaborates to diagnose, treat and guide each patient though lifelong management of a heart failure diagnosis. We create personalized care plans that may include advanced imaging, medication management, lifestyle coaching, cardiac rehabilitation and coordination with your primary physician. From early heart failure symptom evaluation to long-term monitoring, our specialists focus on helping you feel better, stay active and reduce hospital visits.

What is congestive heart failure?

In congestive heart failure, the heart does not pump as strongly as it should. Less blood circulates through the body, and pressure inside the heart rises. To compensate, the heart may enlarge to hold more blood or become stiff. Over time, the heart muscle weakens and cannot pump efficiently.

Despite the name, “heart failure” doesn’t mean the heart has stopped working. It means the heart isn’t pumping blood as well as it should, which is why it’s a serious condition. This reduced pumping ability often develops after long-term problems like coronary artery disease or high blood pressure (hypertension), which strain and weaken the heart over time.

Congestive heart failure happens when the heart’s lower chambers (ventricles) can’t contract or relax well enough. This makes the ventricles stretch and weakens the heart’s ability to pump blood to the body. As a result, blood backs up into the lungs, liver, and legs, causing congestion. Heart failure can affect any chamber, but it most often starts in the left ventricle. It can also be caused by problems like damaged heart valves, irregular heart rhythms (arrhythmias), or heart muscle disease (cardiomyopathy).

How is congestive heart failure diagnosed?

When diagnosing congestive heart failure, your doctor will review your medical history and use a stethoscope to listen for signs of fluid in your lungs and heart. Your doctor may also order other tests to confirm or rule out congestive heart failure, such as:

• Blood tests may be conducted to check for kidney function.
• An X-ray will show whether the heart is enlarged and whether fluid has accumulated around it.
• An electrocardiogram can identify heart rhythm issues.
• An echocardiogram can determine which chamber is causing the problem.
• An ejection fraction measures how much blood is being pumped from the chambers and helps classify the type of heart failure.

What are the symptoms of congestive heart failure?

Congestive heart failure symptoms can be mild or severe and chronic or sudden. Signs of congestive heart failure can include:

• Shortness of breath, especially when lying down
• Coughing and wheezing
• Fatigue and weakness
• Swelling in the ankles and abdomen from retention of fluids
• Weight gain, also from fluid retention
• Dizziness and confusion
• Increased urge to urinate, especially at night

How is congestive heart failure treated?

With a congestive heart failure diagnosis, it is common for several medications to be prescribed, depending on the your type of heart failure and severity of the heart failure symptoms. Medications can include:

• Angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors, which boost blood flow by widening blood vessels
• B-blockers, which slow the heart rate and cut hypertension
• Digitalis, which enhances the heart’s pumping strength
• Diuretics, which promote urination to prevent fluid retention in the body and especially the lungs

Depending on the cause of heart failure, bypass surgery or heart valve replacement surgery may be necessary. In very select cases, your doctor may put you on the list to receive a heart transplant.

How do I get connected to care?

If you are experiencing signs of congestive heart failure or have any concerns about your heart health, check with your primary care physician or cardiologist. If you need to see a cardiologist and don't have one, your primary care provider can make a referral, which may be required prior to scheduling an appointment. 

If you or someone you know is experiencing signs and symptoms of a heart attack, dial 911 immediately and, when necessary, administer CPR.