“Heart Failure Online is dedicated to providing information regarding heart failure to patients and their families.

We have worked hard to break down the components of heart failure, starting with an overview of the organ systems involved and progressing through how each organ system is affected, methods of prevention, treatment options, and much more.”

Heart Failure.org

I am overjoyed that I do not need a heart transplant at this time.

Read more at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/transplant.html#QDobMLkKHBQcU7XK.99

“Whether by a Mack truck or by heart failure or faulty lungs, death happens.  But life isn’t just about avoiding death, is it.  It’s about living.”

Charity Sunshine Tillemann-Dick (is a soprano, composer and presenter. A recipient of two double lung transplants, she speaks and performs frequently at concerts, conferences and events around the United States.)

Treatments for CHF:

Heart failure caused by an excessive workload is curable by treating the primary disease, such as anemia or thyrotoxicosis or hypertension or diabetes. Also, curable are forms caused by anatomical problems such as a heart valve defect. These defects can be surgically corrected.

However, for the common forms of heart failure due to damaged heart muscle no known cure (like a heart attack that damages the heart muscle where the attack took place on the organ) but prevention of it happening again can take place in many cases through treatment of the disease or illness with being compliant in following up with your doctor for the disease or illness and being compliant in following doctor’s orders. The worst thing you can do is ignore it. The treatment seeks to improve patients quality of life and length of survival through lifestyle change and drug therapy.

Patients can minimize the effect t of heart failure by controlling the risk factors for heart disease they may have. Obvious steps include: Don’t smoke or quit smoking, lose weight if necessary, abstaining from alcohol, and making those dietary changes to reduce the amount of salt and fat consumed Regular, modest exercise is also helpful for many patinets, though the amount and intensity should be carefully monitored by a physician.

Even with lifestyle changes, most heart failure patients must take medication. Many patients receive 2 or more meds. Types of medication given: ACE inhibitors, Digitalis, Diuretics, Hydralazine, and Nitrates.

These are some of the meds given for heart failure. Not all medications are suitable for patients, and more than one drug may be needed. Always review the list your pharmacist provides in the action, side effects, with instructions of how to take the drug to make it most effective in your body with what to look for while on this medication to keep you the patient most informed on what you should know.

Results of studies over the years have placed more emphasis on the use of drugs known as angiotensin converting enzymes (ACE) inhibitors. Several studies have indicated that ACE inhibitors improve survival among heart failure patients and may slow perhaps even prevent the loss of the heart pumping activity. This drug prevents the transfer of your enzyme Angiotensin 1 to convert to Angiotensin 2 which prevents the vessels in your body to do vasoconstriction which prevents the pressure in the bloodstream to raise = high B/P (hypertension). This prevents stress to the heart, due to high B/this causes blood to get to the heart slowly and more difficult causing the heart to pump harder but the ACE inhibitor with allowing vasodilation (opening of vessels) keeping pressure down to make the job easier= less stress on the heart. Originally these medications where for patients in the treatment of hypertension but they help patients with heart failure, among other things, decreasing the pressure inside the blood vessels causing the heart to do its job easier.

Digitalis increases the force of the heart’s contractions, helping to improve circulation in the body.

Diuretics are for reducing the amount of fluid in the bloodstream and body by releasing them via the kidneys and having us void the excess out in our urine, these are useful for patients with fluid retention.

Those who aren’t prescribed or cannot take these meds already mentioned may be given a hydralazine medication and/or a drug in the Nitrate classification, each of which help relax tension in the blood vessels to improve blood flow. Also, both Hydralazine and Nitrates function is they cause vasodilation in the vessels improving blood flow to the heart.

Sometimes heart failure is life threatening. Usually, this happens when drug therapy and lifestyle changes fail to control its symptoms. In such cases, a heart transplant may be the only treatment option. However, candidates for transplantation often have to wait months or even years before a suitable donor heart is found.

Studies over the years indicate that some transplant candidates improve during this waiting period through drug treatment and other therapy, and can be removed from the transplant list.

Transplant candidates who do not improve sometimes need mechanical pumps, which are attached to the heart. Called left ventricular assist device (LVADs), the machine takes over part or virtually all of the heart’s blood-pumping activity. However, current LVADs are not permanent solutions for heart failure but are considered bridges to transplantation. Worldwide, about 3,500 heart transplants were performed annually. The vast majority of these are performed in the United States (2,000-2,300 annually). Cedars Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, California has performed the most heart transplants in the last three consecutive years performing 95 transplants in 2012 alone. About 800,000 people have a Class IV heart defect indicating a new organ. The degrees of CHF are I, II, III and IV. In learning more about CHF with heart transplants (including becoming a candidate for one) go to wwwtransplantexperience.com or even hearttransplant.com.

Another surgical procedure for heart failure that is available in America is cardiomyoplasty. This is a surgical procedure in which healthy muscle from another part of the body is wrapped around the heart to provide support for the failing heart. Most often the latissimusHYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Latissimus_dorsi_muscle” HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Latissimus_dorsi_muscle”dorsiHYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Latissimus_dorsi_muscle” muscle is used for this purpose. A special pacemaker is implanted to make the skeletal muscle contract. The electrical stimulator icauses the back muscle to contract, pumping the blood from the heart (this allows the heart to do its job more effectively).

As stated, the heart loses some of its blood pumping ability as a natural consequence of aging.  How- ever, a number of other factors can lead to a potentially life-threatening loss of pumping activity.

As a symptom of underlying heart disease, heart failure is closely associated with the major risk factors for coronary heart disease:  smoking, high cholesterol levels, hypertension (persistent high blood pressure), diabetes= abnormal blood sugar levels, and obesity.  A person can change or eliminate those risk factors and thus lower their risk of developing or aggravating their heart disease and heart failure through healthy habits performed routinely, proper dieting, and balancing rest with exercise.

Among prominent risk factors, hypertension-HTN (high blood pressure) and diabetes are PARTICULARLY IMPORTANT.  Uncontrolled HTN increases the risk of heart failure by 200 %, compared to those who do not have hypertension.   Moreover, the degree of risk appears directly related to the severity of the high blood pressure.

Persons with diabetes have about a two to eight fold greater risk of heart failure than those without diabetes.  Women with diabetes have a greater risk of heart failure than men with diabetes.  Part of the risk comes from the diabetes association with other risk factors for heart disease such as high cholesterol or obesity or other risk factors.  However, the disease process of diabetes also damages the heart muscle.

The presence of coronary disease is among the greatest risks for heart failure.  Muscle damage and scarring caused by a heart attack greatly increase the risk of heart failure.  Cardiac arrhythmias, or irregular heartbeats, also raise heart failure risk.  Any disorder that causes abnormal swelling or thickening of the heart sets the stage for heart failure.

In some people, heart failure arises from problems with heart valves, the flap-like structures that help regulate blood flow through the heart.  Infections in the heart are another source of increased risk for heart failure.

A single risk factor may be sufficient to cause heart failure, but a combination of factors dramatically increases the risk.  Advanced age adds to the potential impact of any heart failure risk.

Finally, genetic abnormalities contribute to the risk for certain types of heart disease, which in turn may lead to heart failure.  However, in most instances, a specific genetic link to heart failure has not been identified.

SO LIVE AS HEALTHY AS POSSIBLE IN YOUR ROUTINE HABITS,  YOUR DIETING OF THE 4 FOOD GROUPS, MAINTAINING YOUR WEIGHT IN A THEREPEUTIC RANGE (look as calculating BMI online for free to find out what your weight range for your height is), and BALANCING REST WITH EXERCISE TO HELP DECREASE THE CHANCE OF GETTING HEART FAILURE.  Go to healthyusa.tsfl.com to learn what Dr. Anderson through his book of “Dr. A.’s Healthy Habits” and me as your health coach could provide you within a reachable cost.  To just view what can be offered to you for no price with no hacking go to healthyusa.tsfl.com and take a peek;)

The definition of heart failure, it occurs when the heart loses its ability to pump enough blood through the body.  Usually, the loss in pumping action is a symptom of an underlying heart problem, such as hypertension and CAD = coronary artery disease.  The term heart failure suggests a sudden and complete stop of heart activity but actually the heart does not suddenly or abruptly stop.  Instead the way it works is heart failure usually develops over time, years. The heart first compensates with the disease or illness the individual has but, just like a car, after wear and tear the heart goes into decompensating to heart failure due to the heart decline.  How serious is this condition?  It varies from person to person depending on factors like an individual with obesity & unhealthy versus a person in healthier condition.  All people diagnosed or not diagnosed with heart failure lose a pumping capacity of the heart happens as they age but diagnosed with heart failure makes the engine of the body a challenge in doing its function properly.  The pump loss is more significant in the person with heart failure and often results from a heart attack (actual scaring to the tissue=death to that tissue area) or from other diseases that can damage the heart.  The severity of the condition determines the impact it has on a person’s life.   At the other end, extremes, treatment often helps people lead full lives if the person follows the meds ordered by the doctor including the diet and activity/exercise the doctor orders to the patient with heart failure (compliance so important).  There are different levels of heart failure but even the mildest form is a serious health problem, which must be treated.  If not the pump (the heart) will just get worse in doing its function properly.  To improve the chance of living longer in an individual with heart failure, patients must take care of themselves, see their physician (cardiologist) on a regular basis, and closely follow treatments (as ordered) with knowing what heart failure actually to understanding how the disease works (is the failure on the right side or left side? Which in time will effect the other side in time).  In knowing what side the failure is on will make you understand what signs and symptoms to expect.

Types of Heart Failure

The term congestive heart failure (CHF) is often used to describe all patients with heart failure.  In reality, congestion=the buildup of fluids in the heart for not pumping correctly, just like pipes in a home not working properly=back up of water in the pipes, happens with CHF also to the  fluids (blood) backing up in the lungs.   This is just one feature of the condition and does not occur in all patients.  There are two main categories of heart failure although within each category, symptoms and effects may differ from patient to patient.  The two categories are:     1-Systolic heart failure (systolic is the top number of your blood pressure=the heart at work).  This occurs when the heart’s (muscle-myocardium) ability to contract (pump=being active) decreases, particularly starting on the L side of the heart where the muscle of the heart is greatest (myocardium=heart muscle).  The heart cannot pump blood with enough force to push a sufficient amount out of the heart into the circulation through  the aorta.  The aorta is a artery (vessel) that leaves the L lower chamber of the heart (left side of the heart=highly oxygenated rich blood).  Due to the heart not using enough force pushing the blood forward in the aorta this causes the blood to back up and cause it to go back up into the L lower to the L upper chamber that goes further back up into the pulmonary vein into the lungs=congestion in the lungs due to the heart failure.

2-Diastolic heart failure (diastolic is the bottom number of your blood pressure which is the pressure when the heart is at rest).  This failure occurs when the heart has a problem relaxing.  The heart cannot properly fill with blood because the muscle of the heart due to trying so hard to compensate over a long period of time with disease (ex. High B/P, Obesity, etc…) strains the heart in doing its function that failure finally starts that the muscle of the heart (myocardium) becomes stiff.  This causes the heart to lose its ability to relax to allow proper filling of the heart in upper and lower chambers=back up of the blood.   This failure starts on the right side of the heart causing the blood to back up away from the heart and may lead this blood that is highly concentrated with carbon dioxide to accumulation especially in the feet, ankles and legs.  Some patients may have lung congestion.

A stent is a wire mesh tube that is used to help hold open an artery.  To simply understand this concept think of a plumber or a mechanic.  With a plumber sometimes they have to replace a certain area of a pipe that connects the water or like a mechanic replacing a certain area of piping (like the muffler piping connected infront of the muffler than can either can be replaced or just welded with piece of piping welded just to save money).  Well a stent keeps the artery open that was clogged.  Its put in that place to reinforce that area of the artery to remain open to allow blood to get to that heart from that coronary artery and it will stay there for life to keep the artery permanently patent to prevent the blockage from happening again with the synthetic mesh piece.

Description

Stents are used to hold open diseased coronary arteries (these arteries supply blood to the heart), as well as diseased arteries of the peripheral vascular system (PVS).  Peripheral means away from the heart the PVS is the arteries that supply blood to the rest of the body (again away from the heart all the way down to the hands and feet).

There are variety of stents currently available.

For a surgeon to find out if you even need one, first usually a angiogram is performed and this is a catheter simply from the femerol artery or from your arm to the coronary arteries.  If the MD sees you show a blockage 80% or more an angioplasty is performed which is a balloon at the end of this catheter that blows up and decompresses to give the effect like punching gloves.  The balloon inflates and deflates over and over again till the blockage breaks open free and then a stent is put in that area to help keep it open permanently (patent).

Some stents have been compressed onto the outside of an angioplasty balloon catheter and delivered by inflating the balloon in the desired location.  Other stents are “self- expanding” spring-loaded devices, which expand automatically upon deployment.

Stents remain in arteries permanently.  The tissue lining the arteries actually grows over the metal mesh to cover the inner lumen of the stent.

Stent procedures have become very common like tonsillectomies were in childhood.  Stents are sometimes used as an alternative to coronary artery bypass surgery, if the patient is a candidate.  Stents are often used in combination with balloon angioplasty.  One leads to the other depending on what the angioplasty displays for the surgeon on the T.V. in when they are doing the procedure and if the come up to a blockage high enough to perform the angioplasty followed with a stent it will be done.

Stents are used in cases of “restenosis”, which refers to the re-closing of arteries after balloon angioplasty.  In carefully selected patients, the use of stents can dramatically reduce restenosis following balloon angioplasty or other catheter-based procedures.  Stents are used frequently to hold open the arteries that have been damaged, torn, or dissected by balloon angioplasty or other catheter-based procedures.  Like plumber or mechanic, get it.

Stents allow angioplasty to be done in patients with severe and long-segment obstruction of coronary arteries.  As soon as the I initial part of the block is widened, a stent is place, which holds it open allowing further opening to proceed.  Stents have also allowed angioplasty to be performed in patients with blocks of multiple vessels, and in multiple blocks in a single artery.

Risks

Risks include the standard risks of an interventional, catheter-based procedure, which should be specifically discussed with your doctor.  Lesions treated with stents can “restenosis” (re- narrow with in weeks to months after the procedure) similar to restenosis associated with angioplasty.  This is why patients after having a stent put in they are on a medication for example like Plavix for life to prevent this occurrence from happening.  It is a anti platelet medication, meaning it doesn’t allow clotting to happen in the stent so blockage doesn’t reoccur through clotting.

Many new technologies are being tested to reduce the problem of restenosis.  These technologies include coating and coverings for the stent, new materials, and radiation.  These new technologies are primarily experimental at this point and will reach soon to the market if not already.  Technology allows the medical field to continuously expand and this will be replaced at one point but isn’t yet.  Just give it time.  At one point we had no CABG (coronary artery bypass) but now the stent in certain cases is replaced by angiograms to further expanding to angioplasties and stents furthering allowing the surgery to take place 1x hopefully if the patient is compliant in diet,  exercise, and following the doctors orders with meds, activity and follow up visits (which are so vital).   A lot is up to the patient in caring or themselves to prevent having this take place again.

Follow up Instructions

Your doctor will recommend blood thinning medications following your stent procedure.  These agents are usually given for one month post procedure along with aspirin and then continued indefinitely.  Your doctor may also prescribe antibiotics for a period of time after the stent procedure, to be taken anytime you have a medical or dental procedure.  Preventing infection.

MRI tests should not be done for at least eight weeks without your doctor’s approval.  Metal detectors do not present a problem.  Stents appear to be safe in the long-term; there are no long-term complications associated with a permanent stent.

Protein Richness

When we rank all of our 100+ WHFoods based on their protein richness (how much protein they provide in comparison with their calorie content), turkey ranks first among all of our foods. A 4-ounce serving of skinned baked turkey breast provides about 34 grams of protein and over two-thirds of the Daily Value (DV). With 4 ounces of turkey leg, this number drops just slightly to 31-32 grams of protein. With 4 ounces of turkey thigh, it drops to about 21 grams. In these examples, the protein values are changing from cut-to-cut partly because of the way the turkey moves and uses its muscles, and partly because of the fat content of the various cuts. If the health benefit you are seeking from turkey is focused on protein richness, you’ll probably want to stick with skinned turkey breast as your preferred cut.

Other Health Benefits

Unfortunately, there is not as much research on turkey as there is on chicken, its fellow bird in the poultry category. Several preliminary studies show the protein richness of turkey to be of potential benefit in regulating blood sugar levels as well as insulin metabolism. These findings make sense since adequate protein intake in a balanced way throughout the day can be very helpful in managing blood sugar. In the area of cancer prevention, turkey shows that intake of it is not associated with increased cancer risk in the same way as red meats. However,they simply show that turkey intake does not raise this risk which is still  a plus compared to some other foods.

Description

Like chicken, turkey belongs to the bird (Aves) class of animals, and to the family of birds called Phasianidae. While there are many different breeds of turkeys, most of them belong to the same genus and species of bird, namely Meleagris gallopavo. Turkeys are truly native to North and South America – they were not brought to the “New World” by European settlers but were instead discovered to be already present and intimately involved with Native American cultures. Turkeys are relatively large birds that can reach about 30-35 pounds in weight. They can fly short distances at speeds of about 50-55 miles per hour and run at approximately 20-25 miles per hour.

History

At 2.5 million tons of turkey meat per year, the U.S. is by far the world’s largest producer of turkey. (All countries in the European Union combined produce 1.75 million tons.) Smaller amounts of turkey are produced in Africa, Asia, and the Mediterranean. At about 450,000 tons, Brazil is the largest turkey producer in South America.

In the U.S., we consume an average of 16.5 pounds of turkey per person per year. That about is about one-quarter of our chicken consumption.

According to the National Turkey Federation, about 20% of all turkey (just over three pounds per person) is consumed on Thanksgiving Day, Gobble Gobble Day.

How to Select and Store

It’s worth taking special care in the selection of turkey! Several aspects of turkey selection will help you maximize your health benefits from this World’s Healthiest Food. First, we recommend the purchase of fresh turkey. Technically, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) guidelines allow use of the word “fresh” only when turkey has never been stored a temperature below 26°F (-3°C). (Otherwise, the term “frozen” or “previously frozen” would be required.) Additives like sodium erythorbate, MSG, and salt are not allowed on fresh turkey, and that’s a major health advantage for you.