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Essay about Congestive Heart Failure Case Study

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Running head: CONGESTIVE HEART FAILURE

Congestive Heart Failure – Case Study

Pathophysiology – BSRN – 420
Instructors: October 10, 2010

Report on Congestive Heart Failure

The heart is a muscle, the most important one in the body. It works like a pump; it receives blood from the body and pumps the blood into the lungs, where it receives oxygen. This oxygen rich blood is then pumped out in to the body system to nourish the body. Congestive heart failure occurs when this pumping action is impaired, and the heart cannot pump enough blood to meet the body’s needs. When the heart cannot pump out the blood it receives, excess fluid may back up into the lungs and other body tissues. If the amount of nourishment to the body …show more content…

After picking up oxygen, the blood travels back to the heart through the pulmonary veins into the left atrium, to the left ventricle and out to the body's tissues through the aorta.” (Google, Health, 2010, pg. 1) “Some patients with heart failure have no symptoms. In these people, the symptoms may develop only with these conditions: • Abnormal heart rhythm (arrhythmias) • Anemia • Hyperthyroidism • Infections with high fever • Kidney disease (Google Health, 2010, pg.1) Risk factors for congestive heart failure include advancing age, as heart failure is the most common reason for hospitalization in the elderly, and as the population ages, the incidence of heart failure is rising dramatically. The positive aspect of this is that people with congestive heart failure are living longer. Sex or gender is another risk factor, as men are at higher risk for heart failure than women. African American’s are at higher risk for heart failure than Caucasians. Genetics and family history of early heart failure
Caused by cadiomyopathies (diseases that damage the heart muscle), may predispose people to this disease. Chronic alcohol abuse can damage the heart muscles, can cause hypertension, and may cause cardiomyopathy. Moderate alcohol consumption, on the other hand, may protect people from heart failure. There

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