Weight gain may be the first noticeable sign that you have developed heart failure or that your heart failure is getting worse. Elevating your feet or wearing supportive stockings can help relieve the swelling. You may notice more severe swelling if you have been eating too much salt, which causes your body to retain fluid. You may see this yourself if you take off your shoes and socks and find that your socks have left an impression in the skin of your ankles and feet. Doctors often test for edema by pressing their thumb to the skin and seeing whether it leaves an impression. Heart failure often causes what doctors call "pitting edema," meaning that applying pressure to the swollen skin leaves an indentation in the skin. The medical term for this swelling in the legs is pedal edema-"pedal" refers to the feet and "edema" refers to the buildup of excess fluid. In some cases the swelling is mild and merely bothersome, while in other cases it can be severe and painful if the skin becomes taut and sensitive. The degree of swelling you experience depends on how well your body is compensating for heart failure and how much sodium and water your body retains. Pressure leaves impressions in your skin. It gets worse at the end of the day or after you stand for long periods.People with heart failure often experience swelling in their ankles or feet. This decrease in your ability to exert yourself physically is what doctors call low exercise capacity. It is only after doctors ask them about changes in their activities that they realize they have been avoiding physical exertion. Some people at first deny that they have been experiencing this symptom. It is a symptom that people with heart failure often don't even notice because they have gradually reduced the level at which they exert themselves.įor example, they may stop walking up the stairs, or they may drive to the store instead of walking. You might also have low exercise capacity. You can't exert yourself like you could before.You have less energy and feel more tired than usual. The shortness of breath generally goes away after a few minutes of sitting up. People who experience PND often have to sit up on the side of the bed, and they may feel a need to open a window to get more air. But after several hours of lying down, they awake with shortness of breath, which often occurs suddenly. In general, people who experience PND don't feel increased shortness of breath when they first lie down. This may occur with waking up coughing and/or wheezing, having a rapid heart rate, and a feeling of being suffocated. The medical term for this symptom is paroxysmal nocturnal dyspnea (PND). Some people with heart failure wake up in the middle of the night with severe shortness of breath. If you have heart failure, your heart may not be able to keep up with the increased amount of blood returning to the heart, so fluid builds up inside the lungs and causes shortness of breath. The reason you may have orthopnea is that when you lie flat, the blood that ordinarily pools in the veins of your legs is reentering your bloodstream. For example, "three-pillow" orthopnea is worse than "two-pillow" orthopnea, because you have less tolerance for lying flat. To gauge the severity of this symptom, doctors often ask people how many pillows they need to lie on to avoid feeling short of breath in bed. The severity of this symptom usually depends on how flat you are lying-the flatter you lie, the more you feel short of breath. The medical term for this symptom is orthopnea (say "or-THAWP-nee-uh"). People with more severe heart failure may experience shortness of breath when they lie down. But people with more severe heart failure may have shortness of breath with minimal exertion. When heart failure develops gradually, your shortness of breath also may develop gradually, which can make it hard to notice. The medical term for this symptom is dyspnea (say "DISP-nee-uh"). If your shortness of breath isn't severe, you may notice it only when you are exerting yourself, and sometimes only during more intense exertion. Shortness of breath from exertion or exercise.
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