Jefferson University Hospitals

Paul Mather, MD is director of the Advanced Heart Failure and Cardiac Transplant Center at the Jefferson Heart Institute of the Thomas Jefferson University Hospital and associate professor of Medicine at Jefferson Medical College of Thomas Jefferson University. Here, he answers a question about the prevalence of heart failure.

Question: Since I’ve reached my mid-sixties, it seems that every week I hear about someone I know having heart failure. Why is heart failure so prevalent?

Answer: Heart failure, also called congestive heart failure, can affect all of us eventually because we are living longer. It’s actually the only cardiovascular disease that is increasing in prevalence, even as the overall incidence of heart disease is slowly dropping. In fact, 80 percent of people over 65 have some form of heart failure. With our aging population – including the baby boomers beginning to reach retirement age – it is estimated that roughly 550,000 people in this country will develop symptomatic heart failure this year.

Heart failure occurs when the lower chambers of the heart are not able to pump blood effectively and cannot meet the needs of the body’s other organs. If heart muscle has been damaged by conditions such as long-term high blood pressure, coronary artery disease, heart valve or heart muscle problems, it is more difficult for the heart to pump effectively. Many causes of heart failure are conditions that can be treated or controlled.

That’s why it’s so important to make a commitment to your health early in life by exercising, watching your diet and seeing your doctor regularly.

Heart failure can develop slowly and people often dismiss symptoms as normal signs of aging. Common symptoms of heart failure include:

• Shortness of breath during rest, exercise or lying flat
• Weight gain
• Visible swelling of the legs and ankles, and, occasionally, the abdomen
• Fatigue and weakness
• Loss of appetite and nausea
• Persistent cough
• Reduced urination

A good rule of thumb is that if you begin to feel physically different, you should consult your physician.

When diagnosed early, heart failure can be treated effectively with medications and lifestyle accommodations. However, heart failure that has progressed to an advanced stage is a multi-organ disease process also affecting the kidneys and lungs, for example, and requires aggressive treatment. At Jefferson’s Advanced Heart Failure and Cardiac Transplant Center, physicians offer a comprehensive approach to the disease process with state-of-the-art care. They provide individually tailored, aggressive therapy to treat each patient using a wide range of medical and surgical options that include investigational treatment devices and heart transplants.

For more information, visit the heart care section of the Jefferson Hospital website.