Alert, Heart Failure Can Shorten Life

Various conditions due to heart failure can be experienced, one of which is a heart attack.

REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA — Cardiologist and Blood Vessel Specialist, Siloam Hospitals Lippo Village, Dr dr. Antonia Anna Lukito, Sp.JP(K), FIHA, FAPSIC, FAsCC, FSCAI, said, heart failure is a condition that gradually shortens our life. Heart failure is also a condition where the function of the heart muscle is impaired, usually resulting in shortness of breath and swelling of the legs or abdomen.

“If the stomach is swollen, then the patient is not only short of breath, but also cannot eat anymore. When he eats a little, the patient’s stomach will be full because it is already filled with water, so he can no longer enter food. This condition will get worse, if the patient or family does not bring patients for treatment,” he explained at a webinar session entitled “Early Detection of Heart Disease: Is It Possible?” recently organized by Siloam Hospitals Lippo Village and Roche Indonesia.

He explained, various conditions caused by heart failure, namely high blood pressure, cardiomyopathy (heart muscle has original disorders), heart attacks, valvular heart disease, arrhythmias and hereditary heart disease. Beware of heart failure because the symptoms of heart failure are not always present. In fact, many people don’t even realize they have heart failure.

“Feeling a little tired, oh “It’s normal because I’m getting older, or now I rarely exercise so I’m not alert, even though she has heart failure,” he said

Under normal conditions, the heart muscle pumps blood out of the left ventricle to the rest of the body and then back into the right ventricle. Whereas in heart failure, the heart muscle weakens so it can’t pump enough blood.

“If there is one chamber that is disturbed or the pumping part of certain chambers of the heart that has problems or certain valves or the aortic or coronary arteries, or any component of the heart that is disturbed, it can result in heart failure,” he explained.

Risk factors for congestive heart failure (fluid accumulation in the lungs), namely hypertension, obesity, smoking and excessive alcohol consumption, coronary artery disease, infection of the heart muscle, family history of heart muscle and a passive lifestyle. Heart failure can be detected early with cardiac ultrasound or echocardiography, cardiac biomarkers and CT scan or cardiac MRI. According to him, there are five ways to reduce heart attacks, namely being active, plant and fish based diet, high fiber diet, getting rid of packaged and sugary foods, and maintaining a healthy mind.

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