What Are the Symptoms of Heart Failure?
The most common signs and symptoms of heart failure are:
- Shortness of breath or trouble breathing
- Fatigue (tiredness)
- Swelling in the ankles, feet, legs, abdomen, and veins in the neck
Other heart failure symptoms may include:
- Rapid or irregular heartbeat
- Reduced ability to exercise
- Persistent cough or wheezing
- Increased need to urinate at night
- Very rapid weight gain from fluid retention
- Lack of appetite
- Nausea
- Difficulty concentrating or decreased alertness
- Chest pain if your heart failure is caused by a heart attack
When symptoms start, you may feel tired and short of breath after routine physical effort, like climbing stairs. As your heart grows weaker, symptoms get worse. You may begin to feel tired and short of breath after getting dressed or walking across the room. Some people have shortness of breath while lying flat.
For in–depth information about the symptoms and risk factors of heart failure, see Heart Failure, published by Mayo Clinic.
When you enroll in our heart failure DM program, you will receive an action plan that you can complete with your doctor's help. Having an individualized plan of action makes it easier to know what to do when symptoms occur.
Learn more and begin the enrollment process now.
Source: From Heart Failure, published by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute
