Grandma Li has been easily tired and weak when she does everything recently, and she feels breathless when she sleeps and lies down, her legs are swollen, and she can't square dance for a long time. The examination found that Grandma Li was suffering from heart failure, referred to as heart failure.
Chronic heart failure can be caused by the progression of various heart diseases to severe stages, such as coronary heart disease, myocardial infarction, arrhythmias, and dilated cardiomyopathy. Patients with heart failure have a reduced quality of life, poor prognosis, and high mortality rate, so it is very important to pay attention to the early stage and management of heart disease to prevent heart failure.
Once heart failure occurs, is it irreversible?Not really. Thanks to medical advances, there are medical treatments that can help people with heart failure out of their desperate situation.
First of all, the causes of heart failure include almost all heart diseases and some related diseases that can cause impaired heart function. Therefore, in the process of heart failure, the first thing is to carry out the primary disease, so as to prevent the further development of heart failure.
Secondly, from symptomatic improvement, drugs are the basis of all heart failure**, and their goal is to improve the patient's symptoms and prognosis. The synergy of cardiotonic, diuretic, and vasodilator drugs can effectively improve the quality of life of patientsAngiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors Angiotensin receptor antagonists, receptor blockers, aldosterone receptor antagonists, angiotensin receptor neprilysin inhibitors, and sinus node function inhibitors can be used to slow disease progression, improve patient outcomes, and prolong life.
Starting from the mechanism again, when the heart is healthy, the atria and ventricles contract and relax in order, and the left and right ventricles will "walk in unison" to pump out the blood needed by the body to meet the needs of the human body. Some patients with heart failure will no longer "walk in unison" due to the enlargement of the heart or other **, the rhythm is inconsistent, and the blood in the heart cannot be pumped effectively, causing the heart to become larger and larger, if not timely**, heart failure will be further aggravated, and even sudden death. At this point, you need to find a way to synchronize the left and right ventricles again.
Currently, intervention** allows the patient's two ventricles to "walk in unison" again by fitting an implantable resynchronization** pacemaker (CRT) or an implantable resynchronization** cardioverter-defibrillator (CRT-D).
CRT stimulates the synchronized pacing of the left and right ventricles of the heart by implanting electrodes into the heart, just like shouting a password, so that the left and right ventricles return to the state of "walking in unison", thereby significantly increasing cardiac output, improving cardiac function, and reducing the size of the heart or even gradually recovering.
CRT-D can reduce the occurrence of sudden death, it combines the two functions of pacing and defibrillation, which can not only improve the synchronization of cardiac contractions, but also has the function of cardiac defibrillation, which can effectively avoid the occurrence of sudden cardiac death.
In conclusion, heart failure is a chronic, progressive disease that is difficult, but it can be. CRT** is recommended in patients who do not improve cardiac function and develop left and right ventricular asynchrony under medication optimization** as prescribed.
In the end, Grandma Li's heart function was greatly improved through drugs** and CRT**, chest tightness and fatigue were relieved, and she was able to square dance with her retired friends again.
Author: Li Hailing.
Text: Li Hailing (Cardiovascular Physician, Shanghai Tenth People's Hospital) Photo: Wen Wei Po Materials**Editor: Li Chenyan Editor-in-charge: Tang Wenjia.
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