¶ … Congestive Cardiac Failure: Nursing Perspective
Congestive heart failure is a congenital condition that affects millions of American's every year. Heart failure often manifests in a chronic condition for victims of the disease.
There are several nursing interventions important for control and maintenance of the condition. Congestive heart failure can result in serious complications including edema, respiratory disorders and can lead to premature death. Treating congestive heart failure appropriately is critical to a patient's outcome. Perhaps even more critical to a patient's outcome is patient education targeted at prevention and healthy living. Nursing management of the condition depends upon appropriate medical evaluation, medication administration, monitoring and patient education. These ideas are explored in greater detail below.
Congestive heart failure is often congenital in nature. Congestive heart failure usually manifests when the cardiac muscle is old and tired and stops circulating properly. This may result from damage to the heart; alternatively myocarditis and cardio myopathy may be present which might lead to congestive heart failure. Heart attacks that end up killing part of the heart tissue and this can also lead to congestive heart failure.
Congestive heart failure is basically a slow deterioration of the hearts ability to fully and effectively circulate oxygenated blood. Right sided heart failure differs from left sided; in right sided heart failure a patient experiences systemic back up, manifesting as pedal edema or swelling of the feet. Left sided heart failure tends to present with pulmonary edema, (fluid in lungs) and is more serious (Arocha & Patel, 1995). Left sided heart failure is also more common.
Respiratory dysfunction occurs as a result of left sided heart failure - as fluid builds up in the lungs it is pulled to the back, and if someone is lying flat, more lung surface is covered and the patient will have trouble lying. An appropriate nursing intervention will...
Congestive Cardiac Failure Mr Ward is a 71-year-old male who reports feeling a non-radiating, "heavy" discomfort in the lower retrosternal and epigastric region particularly when he bends over or walks short distances. He also reports a further 7 days of dyspnoea during moderate exertion. On examination his blood pressure was 165/95 mm HG, pulse 90 -100 bpm, respiratory rate of 24 with inspiratory crackles at both lung bases. The following blood
Congestive Heart Failure CHF Overview: As you know, Congestive Heart Failure (CHF) is one of the most common causes of death in the United States. The multifaceted causes and symptoms associated with CHF often leave the health care provider treating the symptoms rather than underlying causes, with near universal need to tailor care to each patient through a sometimes difficult process if elimination. The sometimes-idiosyncratic nature of epidemiology can also leave the
One's heart may appear enlarged in heart failure. The X-ray also may reveal whether ther e is any fluid buildup in the person's lungs. X-rays also sometimes show conditions other than heart failure that possibly cause the patient's signs and symptoms (Mayo Clinic Staff, 2009). Electrocardiogram (ECG): Through electrodes attached to the patient's skin, an ECG records the electrical activity of person's heart and records the impulses. These impulses, displayed
Pregnant or breastfeeding women, older patients and other patients with certain medical problems are advised to first consult their doctors before using the drugs. These medical problems are heart disease, heart rhythm problems, severe lung disease, kidney disease, liver disease, and thyroid disease (Flanigan). Although side effects of digitalis drugs are rare, patients are urged to consult reactions such as skin rash, hives or other troublesome symptoms (May 2006). Signs
Congestive Heart Failure It is a fact that Congestive Heart Failure is an extremely frightening word and an equally frightening concept to comprehend, and when a loved one, or oneself has been diagnosed with this condition, it is quite natural to relapse into a state of depression or panic. However, it is not an untreatable disease, and with the correct and appropriate treatment methods, and with the right physician attending, the
The heart is an important muscle in the body: the body depends on the heart muscle to pump oxygen and nutrient-rich blood throughout the circulatory system. There are four chambers in the heart, which collect the blood from the body and send it back out to the lungs and the other parts of the body. When a heart muscle valve fails, the circulation of the blood is reduced, and this
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