To perform this breathing at home, you must:

• Sit in a chair and relax your shoulders
• Pinch your lips, leaving a small gap between them
• Inhale air noisily through the opening between the lips for a couple of seconds
• Exhale gently without opening your lips in four counts
• Continue to inhale and exhale in this manner for 10 minutes

You can try this exercise any time you are out of breath and repeat it throughout the day until you feel better.

Finding a comfortable, supportive position

Finding a comfortable, supportive position (standing or lying) can help you relax and catch your breath. If shortness of breath is caused by anxiety or excessive exertion, this may be the best method.

The following positions can relieve pressure on a person's airway and improve breathing:

• Sitting in a chair, preferably with your head supported
• Leaning against a wall to support the back of the body
• Standing with your hands on the table to lift the weight off your feet
• Lying on your back with pillows under your head and knees

Fan use

Research has shown that using a portable ventilator to blow your nose and face can reduce shortness of breath. Feeling the force of the air flow when inhaling makes people feel the air entering the lungs and relax.

However, the researchers did not find that using a ventilator helped relieve the symptoms of shortness of breath caused by another condition or disease.

Vapor inhalation

Breathing in the steam helps to clear the nasal passages, making it easier to breathe. In addition, the heat and moisture from the steam breaks down mucus in the lungs, which can also reduce shortness of breath.

What causes shortness of breath?

For many, shortness of breath appears suddenly and disappears after a short period of time. Others encounter her regularly. Shortness of breath that occurs regularly may be the result of a more serious underlying medical condition. Sudden shortness of breath may require immediate treatment.

Common Causes

Shortness of breath that occurs from time to time can be caused by:

• Being overweight or in poor physical condition
• Smoking
• Allergens or pollutants in the air
• Extreme temperatures
• Anxiety

Other diseases

Regular shortness of breath can be caused by a more serious medical condition that affects the heart or lungs. The heart and lungs help carry oxygen around the body and get rid of carbon dioxide. Thus, diseases that affect how they function can also affect a person's breathing.

Read also:

Suffocation

Heart failure

Heart attack

Heart enlargement

Blood clot in the lungs

Pneumonia

Carbon monoxide poisoning

Foreign object trapped in the lungs

Lifestyle changes

Depending on the cause of the dyspnea, some lifestyle changes can eliminate symptoms or permanently relieve shortness of breath. These changes include:

• Weight loss if obesity is the cause of shortness of breath
• Exercise to improve fitness
• Avoiding exercise in hot conditions or at high altitudes
• Quitting smoking and avoiding secondhand smoke
• Avoiding allergens and pollutants
• Treating the underlying condition that caused the shortness of breath

Every person experiences shortness of breath, and repeatedly throughout life, and sometimes several times a day. Most often, this is a natural reaction of the respiratory system to a sharp or significant increase in physical activity, it can accompany stress and even just anxiety. But sometimes shortness of breath indicates a particular disease, therefore, the causes of this condition should be addressed with special attention.

What is shortness of breath?

Any physical activity leads to increased breathing, but this is natural and does not create anxiety. Sometimes the load increases dramatically and significantly, causing a feeling of oxygen deficiency. In this case, it is enough to pause, restore breathing and continue moving - the body adapts very quickly. If breathing goes astray for no reason, shortness of breath occurs at rest or with insignificant physical activity, there is reason for excitement. This could be a sign of a serious illness.

What is shortness of breath in medical terminology? This is a subjective feeling of lack of air, manifested by an increase in the breathing rhythm to a value exceeding 18 cycles per minute, a feeling of heaviness in the chest, the inability to breathe deeply enough.

Dyspnea classification types

The severity of shortness of breath can be classified as follows:

• Norm... Shortness of breath worries only with a very serious exertion.
• Mild degree... Breathing is confused when walking up, walking fast or running (see also -).
• Medium degree... Due to shortness of breath, the patient cannot move as quickly as his healthy peers, he has to stop periodically to restore breathing.
• Severe degree... When walking slowly, the patient has to stop every 100-150 m to restore breathing.
• Extremely severe... Shortness of breath is observed during daily household activities or even at rest, the patient practically cannot leave the home.

In addition, there are two types of dyspnea:

• ... It is characterized by difficulty in inhaling and is a sign of a partial overlap of the airways in the trachea and large bronchi. This condition often develops in asthma sufferers or with pressure on the bronchi from the outside - for example, with pleurisy.
• ... Difficulty exhaling due to insufficient patency of small bronchi is a symptom of obstructive pulmonary disease (obstructive pulmonary disease) or even emphysema. Often, with shortness of breath, there is difficulty in inhaling. The causes of such mixed shortness of breath can be not only pathologies of the respiratory tract, but also diseases of the cardiovascular and some other body systems.

Causes of shortness of breath

In general, the causes of breathing disorders can be divided into the following main groups:

Shortness of breath due to respiratory failure

At any diseases of the lungs or bronchi shortness of breath is observed to some extent. It can be acute, like with pleurisy, and it can also last for weeks or months, that is, it can be chronic. In the chronic form, the airways are partially blocked, as a rule, by a viscous secretion. In the case of COPD (Chronic OPC), inhalation is difficult.

In the absence of proper treatment, the patient's condition worsens, occasionally relief comes if sputum leaves when coughing.

Shortness of breath with characteristic impairment of exhalation is observed during an attack bronchial asthma due to stress or eating allergens. An attack can have disastrous consequences if it is not stopped in time with special medications (aerosols). In some cases, you have to resort to emergency medical assistance.

Bronchitis and pneumonia also accompanied by shortness of breath, the severity of which depends on the severity and extent of the inflammatory process. With adequate treatment, shortness of breath, like other manifestations of the disease, is eliminated quite quickly. In severe pneumonia, shortness of breath may be aggravated by the addition of heart failure.

At tumor processes of the respiratory system, shortness of breath occurs at the stage when the neoplasm reaches a size that impedes normal air circulation. At the same time, there is also a strong unproductive cough, the presence of blood discharge in the outgoing sputum, chest pain, weakness, pallor, weight loss.

Pulmonary embolism (PE) also leads to shortness of breath. At the same time, due to insufficient blood supply associated with partial blockage of the artery with blood clots, part of the lungs does not participate in the breathing process, which leads to shortness of breath. Inhalation difficulties occur when airway obstruction, which may result from:

• pressure on the organs of the respiratory system from the outside due to an enlarged thyroid gland, aortic aneurysm, etc.;
• neoplasms in the respiratory tract;
• the presence of a foreign body in the respiratory system;
• cicatricial stenosis;
• prolonged inflammatory process.

Infectious diseases leading to the poisoning of the body with bacterial toxins, or the ingestion of chemicals into the respiratory system can cause toxic pulmonary edema, manifested by increasing shortness of breath. In the absence of detoxification, death can occur.

Respiratory disorders also occur with diseases such as:

• pneumothorax;
• tuberculosis;
• actinomycosis;
• emphysema;
• silicosis;
• defects of the vertebrae of the thoracic region, ankylosing spondylitis.

Shortness of breath in diseases of CVS

Many CVS pathologies are accompanied by shortness of breath. In the initial stages, it occurs only with a significant increase in physical activity, but as the state of the cardiovascular system worsens, shortness of breath also worsens. She begins to appear even with a slight load and at rest.

With advanced forms of CVS pathologies, there may be signs of nocturnal suffocation, when the patient wakes up in a panic from lack of air.

Dyspnea of ​​a neurotic nature

Three quarters of patients in neurological and psychiatric departments complain of shortness of breath. They experience bouts of suffocation, they often do not have enough air or something prevents them from breathing deeply. As a rule, these subjective sensations are not justified by any physiological reasons, but are purely emotional in nature - it is enough to calm and relax the patient, as his breathing is normalized.

Stressful situations lead to psychogenic breathing disorders, they are also a consequence of an unstable psyche, increased excitability and anxiety, obsessive fears.

Dyspnea of ​​neurotic origin can be distinguished by the presence of emotional manifestations - the patient not only breathes heavily, but also sighs, sighs, groans.

Anemic shortness of breath

Shortness of breath with anemia occurs due to oxygen starvation of tissues. Anemia is expressed by a change in the blood count and, above all, by a decrease in the amount of hemoglobin, the main function of which is to deliver oxygen from the lungs to the organs and systems of the body. Since there is little hemoglobin, then it performs the transport function worse. Experiencing a deficiency of oxygen, the body tries to make up for the missing, as if pumping oxygen from the outside due to more frequent and deep breaths.

Endocrine dyspnea

Diabetics, overweight and obese people, patients with thyrotoxicosis complain of shortness of breath. The latter increases the body's need for oxygen, since it creates an excess of thyroid hormones and, as a result, accelerates metabolic processes, increases heart rate. By increasing more intensive breathing, the body compensates for the oxygen deficiency.

Obesity significantly complicates breathing, since it interferes with the work of the respiratory muscles, heart contractions, and also constrains the expansion of the lungs, preventing a person from fully breathing. All this leads to oxygen starvation of tissues and organs, and hence to shortness of breath.

Diabetes mellitus has a lot of severe complications, among which the most frequent are various pathologies of the heart and blood vessels. The oxygen deficiency arising from the inadequate functioning of the CVS leads to shortness of breath. In severe stages of diabetes, the kidneys also suffer - diabetic nephropathy develops, which leads to anemia and aggravates respiratory disorders.

Shortness of breath during pregnancy

During pregnancy, shortness of breath is the result of a whole range of reasons:

• An increase in the volume of circulating blood leads to additional stress on the respiratory and cardiovascular systems.
• The volume of the chest is reduced due to the pressure of the enlarging uterus on the diaphragm.
• Oxygen consumption increases due to the needs of the growing fetus.
• Almost every pregnancy is accompanied by anemia.

Therefore, even at rest, the pregnant woman breathes at a frequency of 22-24 cycles per minute and even more intensively during physical or mental stress. With an increase in the duration of pregnancy, shortness of breath becomes more noticeable.

Shortness of breath during pregnancy is not dangerous if it does not exceed the indicated indicators or remains at rest.

Shortness of breath in children

For children of different ages, it is normal to have a different number of respiratory movements (RR) per unit of time:

• up to 6 months - more than 60 NPV / min;
• 6-12 months - 50-60 NPV / min;
• 1-5 years old - 40-50 NPV / min;
• 5-10 years -25-40 NPV / min;
• 10-14 years old - 20-25 NPV / min.

If the baby’s breathing seems abnormal, it’s worth counting its frequency. It is best to do this when the child is asleep: you need to put your hand on his chest and count the number of complete breathing cycles. The hand should be warm so as not to wake up and frighten the baby, as this will distort the result. Emotional arousal, physical activity, crying and even feeding increase NPV - this must be borne in mind when interpreting the result of calculations.

If the child is unable to restore normal breathing at rest, or the NPV is significantly higher than normal, you should immediately seek medical help.

The following diseases or pathological conditions can be the cause of shortness of breath in a child:

• respiratory distress syndrome of the newborn;
• false croup;
• congenital heart defects;
• bacterial or viral diseases of the respiratory system;
• asthma;
• allergic reactions;
• anemia.

Which specialist should I contact?

If the cause of shortness of breath is not initially clear, it is best to contact a therapist (or, in the case of a child, a pediatrician), who will prescribe the necessary studies and refer to narrow specialists. It can be:

• pulmonologist;
• cardiologist;
• hematologist;
• endocrinologist;
• oncologist;
• neurologist or psychiatrist.

Only a specialist can prescribe the correct treatment, prescribing all the necessary pills based on the cause of shortness of breath.

Folk remedies for shortness of breath

The following are simple recipes that will help with shortness of breath, but their reception is possible only with the permission of the doctor, because otherwise you can only aggravate the condition:

• Grind the reed into 1 glass, pour 1 liter of boiling water and take 1 glass 4 times a day for 3 weeks.
• Grind 2 cloves of garlic with 2 lemons to the state of gruel, add 1 tsp to the mixture. olive oil and mix thoroughly. Take 1 tbsp before meals. l. within a month.
• Pour 100 g of sunflower inflorescences with 400 ml of vodka, leave the product for 2 weeks. Take 35 drops 3 times daily after meals. The course of treatment is until the condition normalizes.
• 1 tbsp. l. chop astragalus herbs, pour 1 glass of boiling water, leave for 2 hours and strain. Drink 50 ml 4 times a day before meals. You can add sugar or honey to the product when taken.
• 1 tbsp. l. chop the underside root, pour 400 ml of boiling water and leave in a warm place for 4 hours. Take 200 ml 2 times a day before meals.
• Brew cranberry herb as tea and drink throughout the day.

Video: Causes, treatment and diagnosis of shortness of breath

The authors and presenters of the popular TV show talk about the most common causes of shortness of breath and methods of eliminating it. They will also talk about the most common diagnostic techniques that can help identify the causes of shortness of breath:

Shortness of breath is not an independent disease - it indicates various disorders in the body. Most often, it is a symptom of serious illness (with the exception of pregnancy and mild forms of respiratory infections). Therefore, if you notice breathing disorders in the absence of exercise or with a slight increase in activity, or cannot catch your breath after exercise for a long time, be sure to consult with your doctors.

Next article.

Constant painful shortness of breath makes a person's life uncomfortable, since he is deprived of the ability to breathe normally, which is necessary for the functioning of all organs and systems of the body. Over the years, such pathologies appear in many people, as the extensibility and elasticity of the lung tissue decreases, the strength and mobility of the diaphragm and chest muscles change. As a result, the lungs lose the ability to expand completely. Shortness of breath can also occur due to chronic illnesses or temporary health problems.

Shortness of breath can occur occasionally, paroxysmal, and can be chronic. A sudden lack of air, whistling or wheezing, changes in depth and rhythm during breathing are pronounced symptoms of shortness of breath. The man turns pale, tries to grab for air, his lips turn blue.

In the chronic course of the disease, it is difficult for a person to breathe while lying down, therefore, the muscles of the neck or abdominal breathing are connected to the process. The chronic form can be determined by the frequency of inhalation and exhalation - if the rhythm is abnormal, then this is a clear symptom of pathology. Shortness of breath can occur in certain specific situations, such as walking, exercising, climbing stairs, going out into the cold, after eating, at night, and even during sex.

• When walking shortness of breath is associated with cardiac activity, or rather with the coronary vascular system, which supplies blood to the myocardium. The presence of heart disease, thinning of the vascular walls, and septal defects directly affects shortness of breath. As a result, oxygen starvation occurs, which is manifested by shortness of breath when walking.
• Not a single person can do without minimal physical exertion, just as without eating. But if shortness of breath appears with such daily actions, this is already a pathology. It can occur due to disorders of the heart or respiratory system - the lungs and bronchi. As a result, there is a deficiency of oxygen entering the bloodstream, and shortness of breath appears.
• Climbing stairs should not cause any particular difficulty and shortness of breath in a healthy person. It can appear in people suffering from lung infections, colds, emphysema, pneumonia, etc. Shortness of breath can turn into an acute attack with chest pain and even cause loss of consciousness.
• If a person starts to choke when going out into the cold, this may be a consequence of cold allergy, pathology of the lungs, anemia. This also happens in people with insufficient body weight. Frosty air is good for the body, but you need to learn how to breathe when leaving a warm room. The first rule is that you cannot inhale the sharply frosty air with your open mouth - this can cause shortness of breath and pain in the heart.
• Difficulty breathing may occur and when resting at night... This indicates left ventricular failure or stagnation in the tissues of the heart muscle. A person has to put on several pillows or sleep while sitting to relieve the condition. It also provides relief from the adoption of an upright position, as the blood recedes from the lungs.
• Shortness of breath during sex can occur for the above reasons, as well as with anemia, which is caused by a deficiency of iron in the blood. Precisely this can be determined by the doctor when receiving the results of clinical tests.

Causes of shortness of breath

Dyspnea can be caused by various diseases - they can be determined by the frequency and nature of inhalation and exhalation. Each category of pathology has its own name and rationale. In medicine, there is a division, which is defined as central dyspnea, pulmonary, cardiac and hematogenous. In turn, they are also divided into several more types.

Pulmonary dyspnea

Expiratory dyspnea is the most common form, which is determined by difficulty in exhaling and occurs when the lumen in the bronchi narrows due to their swelling, spasm, or sputum blockage. To cope with this problem in the process of breathing, it is necessary to strengthen the work of the respiratory muscles, but this is not enough, and the exhalation cycle can be difficult.

This form of shortness of breath manifests itself in bronchial asthma, especially during attacks, as well as in chronic bronchitis, in the event of bronchospasm and allergic edema of the bronchi. This form is characterized by whistling and wheezing sounds when exhaling, but, unlike cardiac dyspnea, a person has the opportunity to sleep peacefully at night without suffocating, and his limbs do not get cold.

Inspiratory dyspnea is defined by difficulty breathing. This is due to the accumulation of fluid in the chest - with fibrosis, lymphogenous carcinomatosis, pleurisy, ascites, ankylosing spondylitis. A similar form manifests itself in case of laryngeal edema, tumor diseases in this area.

This type of shortness of breath can be determined by the inability of a person to speak without frequent breaths, it also manifests itself during even minimal physical activity. Inhalation in such cases is accompanied by a hissing noise.

Cardiac dyspnea

The causes of this category of respiratory failure are most often mitral stenosis, left atrial myxoma, or left ventricular heart failure, in which blood circulation is impaired, which leads to respiratory distress. Symptoms of cardiac dyspnea in these pathologies are orthopnea and polypnoea.

• Orthopnea- This is a syndrome of cardiac dyspnea, which forces a person to be upright all the time, as this relieves his condition. Orthopnea is associated with left ventricular and left atrial failure.
• Polypnea- characterized by increased frequency and depth of breathing, up to the phenomenon of hyperventilation of the lungs. Most often caused by excessive venous blood flow to the heart when a person takes a horizontal position, it can be caused by chronic heart failure.

Hematogenous dyspnea

Such shortness of breath occurs when toxic products appear in the blood due to liver failure, diabetes mellitus or poisoning. Breathing due to the large air flow becomes noisy and well audible.

In addition, the hemic type differs, which mainly occurs with anemia, due to a decrease in the concentration of oxygen in the blood. In patients with anemia, the appearance of such shortness of breath is more often the result not of the disease itself, but of other reasons, for example, anemic myocardiography, hypoxic damage to the central nervous system.

Central dyspnea

This type is a symptom of pathological processes in the respiratory center of the central nervous system, with its oraginous lesions, neuroses, or from exposure to neurotropic toxic substances. Unlike all other categories, such shortness of breath is not a reaction of the respiratory apparatus to pathology in other organs, it is itself the root cause of respiratory failure, which entails serious consequences. It can manifest itself in different ways: arrhythmia, centrogenic bradypnea, hyperpnea, tachypnea and oligopnea.

• Respiratory arrhythmias are caused by dysfunctions in the brain stem, which occur with traumatic brain injury, stroke, inflammation and edema, as well as with certain types of chemical or drug poisoning.
• Bradypnea - this is the designation for rare breathing that can occur when poisoning with narcotic substances or with pathological changes in the central nervous system. Sometimes you can see it in healthy people during deep sleep. With a systematic manifestation of bradypnea, consultation with a neurologist is imperative.
• Oligopnea - shallow, rare breathing with insufficient ventilation of the lungs, can occur with hypothermia. If you do not take medical measures, this type of shortness of breath becomes more severe and can lead to respiratory arrest. In all cases, the prognosis for the appearance of oligopnea is unfavorable, as it leads to respiratory acidosis or diffuse cyanosis.
• Tachypnea - rapid shallow breathing that can occur with neuroses, tumor formations, meningitis. Respiratory rate reaches 75-80 times per minute. This phenomenon also occurs with pericholecystitis, diffuse peritonitis, ascites, disruption of the central nervous system.
• Hyperpnea - pathologically frequent deep breathing, occurs in a coma with hemorrhagic stroke, meningitis, head trauma, alcoholic coma. Due to the accumulation of mucus in the nasopharynx and trachea and the reduction of the pharyngeal muscles during breathing, snoring and whistling sounds often occur.

General treatment for shortness of breath

Treatment for shortness of breath is effective if the cause is identified. To do this, you need to go through a serious in-depth medical examination, since it will be wrong to treat the symptom, not paying attention to the essence of the problem.

The main task is to ensure normal ventilation of the lungs. To do this, you need, first of all, to make efforts to the person suffering from this pathology - you need to give up tobacco, start to increase your physical activity.

For the treatment of orthopnea, in which it is impossible to breathe while lying down, ultrasonic inhalation sanitization and immunotherapy are well suited. An overall treatment plan for shortness of breath usually consists of the following:

• Elimination of foci of infection in the entire respiratory system.
• Bringing to normal the gastrointestinal tract, lymphatic, cardiovascular systems of the body, psychoemotional sphere.
• Immunomodulation (increased immunity).
• Energetic activation of the body.

Medications

• If the cause of shortness of breath is respiratory diseases, first of all, medical specialists recommend drinking plenty of soft alkaline drinks.
• In case of intoxication of the body, infusion therapy is needed - the introduction of intravenous fluid (saline, hemodez, rheopolyglucin and others)

Shortness of breath caused by bronchospasm is treated with drugs that relieve it. The drugs are divided into long-term and short-term drugs.

Short-acting drugs:

• salbutamol (tablets, inhalers, solutions for use in a nebulizer).
• fenoterol (aerosol, solution for inhalation);
• terbutaline (tablets, injections, inhalation).

Long-acting drugs:

• saltos (tablets);
• formoterol (capsules, inhaler);
• clenbuterol (tablets, syrup);
• salmeterol (aerosol, powder for inhalation);

The following medications are used to relax the bronchi:

• atrovent - ipratropium bromide (inhaler, capsules, injection solution).
• Combined drugs:
• berodual (aerosol, solution for inhalers);
• ditek (inhalation solution)
• Methylxanthines

Short-term action:

• aminophylline (tablets, intravenous injections).

Long-acting:

• eufilong (capsules);
• theopec (tablets).

Breathing agents for bronchial asthma:

• sodium cromoglycate (inhaler, capsules);
• nedocromil sodium (inhaler);
• nalcrom (capsules).

There are other drugs, but any of them should only be prescribed by a specialist doctor... Self-medication for severe forms of shortness of breath can lead to very serious consequences.

Folk remedies for shortness of breath

In the piggy bank of folk remedies there are recipes that will help expand the bronchi and relieve shortness of breath.

• An infusion of the fruits and flowers of hawthorn, mixed one to one, is made as follows: with three glasses of boiling water, pour three large spoons of the collection, divide into three doses during one day.
• Honey and juniper oil. Juniper cones (100 g) + butter (50 g) + honey (150 g) steam in a water bath. Take two large spoons of tea daily.
• Lilac flowers (one large spoon) are poured with a glass of boiling water. Drink two large spoons four times a day.

Simple breathing exercises can help solve problems with shortness of breath, whatever the cause.

• After exhaling air through your mouth, you need to inhale it through your nose, then exhale with force through your mouth and draw in your stomach, count to ten. Inhale through your mouth so that the air goes "into the stomach", then draw in your stomach and hold your breath, counting to ten. This exercise can be performed while sitting, standing and even walking: exhale - inhale - exhale - hold your breath - exhale.
• The next exercise should be done while standing or sitting, arms bent at the elbows. Open your palms so you can see them. The fists are clenched with effort while producing noisy short breaths (8 times). Then lower your hands for five to ten seconds and repeat the exercise. The required number of approaches is up to twenty.

You can get acquainted with other exercises from a therapeutic gymnastics instructor. If you do them regularly, you can say goodbye to shortness of breath forever.

An example of exercises for breathing exercises in the video

Prevention of shortness of breath

In order not to get such a problem and then look for ways to get rid of it, it is better to think about it in advance and prevent the onset of those diseases that are its root cause. To do this, you should adhere to simple life rules:

• Maintain a normal psycho-emotional state.
• Give up bad habits (alcohol, smoking and others).
• It is imperative to give the body a reasonable regular physical activity - this can be morning exercises, walking, climbing stairs, swimming, etc.
• Control the correct position of the body during sleep - the head should lie on the pillow at an angle of 35-40 degrees.
• If symptoms of shortness of breath appear, you should immediately consult a doctor and follow all his recommendations.
• Perform breathing exercises before shortness of breath appears - it never hurts.

There are many tips, medicines and natural remedies that cannot be covered in one article. It will be very interesting if you share your experience of getting rid of shortness of breath in the comments. Perhaps with your advice you will make life easier for someone.

From this article you will receive comprehensive information about the disease heart failure: why it develops, its stages and symptoms, how it is diagnosed and treated.

Date of publication of the article: 12/18/2016

Date the article was updated: 05/25/2019

With heart failure, the heart is unable to fully cope with its function. Because of this, tissues and organs receive an insufficient amount of oxygen and nutrients.

If you have a suspicion of heart failure, do not hesitate to contact a cardiologist. If you apply at an early stage, you can get rid of the disease completely. But with heart failure of the 2nd degree and higher, doctors usually give not such a favorable prognosis: it is unlikely that it will be possible to cure it to the end, but it is possible to stop its development. If you are negligent about your health and do not go to specialists, the disease will progress, which can be fatal.

Why does pathology arise?

The causes of heart failure can be congenital and acquired.

Causes of congenital pathology

Causes of Acquired Heart Failure

• Chronic arterial hypertension (high blood pressure);
• vascular spasms;
• stenosis (narrowing) of blood vessels or heart valves;
• endocarditis - inflammation of the inner lining of the heart;
• myocarditis - inflammation of the heart muscle;
• pericarditis - inflammation of the serous membrane of the heart;
• tumors of the heart;
• postponed myocardial infarction;
• metabolic disorders.

Acquired heart failure mainly affects people over 50 years of age. Also at risk are smokers and those who abuse alcohol and (or) drugs.

Often, heart failure occurs and progresses due to excessive physical activity during adolescence, when the load on the cardiovascular system is already high. For the prevention of heart failure, young athletes are advised to reduce the intensity of training at the age when puberty begins and the body is most active. If at this age the initial symptoms of heart failure appear, most likely, doctors will prohibit sports for 0.5-1.5 years.

Classification and symptoms

Signs of heart failure can manifest themselves to varying degrees depending on the severity of the condition.

Classification of heart failure according to Vasilenko and Strazhesko:

Stage 1 (initial, or latent)

Symptoms appear only with intense physical activity, which was previously given without difficulty. Signs: shortness of breath, palpitations. At rest, no circulatory disorders are observed.

For patients with this stage of heart failure, there are no restrictions in terms of physical activity. They can do any job. However, it is still necessary to undergo a preventive examination by a cardiologist once every six months or a year; you may also need to take medications that support the work of the heart.

Treatment at this stage is effective and helps to get rid of the disease.

Stage 2 A

Sports with such heart failure are prohibited, but physical education and moderate physical activity at work are not contraindicated.

Signs can be eliminated with proper treatment.

Stage 2 B

Blood circulation is impaired both in small and large circles.

All symptoms appear at rest or after little exercise. It:

• cyanosis of the skin and mucous membranes,
• cough,
• dyspnea,
• wheezing in the lungs
• swelling of the limbs,
• aching chest pains
• enlargement of the liver.

Patients experience chest discomfort and shortness of breath even with the slightest physical exertion, as well as during intercourse. Walking exhausts them. Climbing up the steps is very difficult. Such patients are usually recognized as disabled.

Treatment can help reduce symptoms and prevent further development of heart failure.

Stage 3 (terminal, or dystrophic)

Due to severe circulatory disorders, the main symptoms intensify. Also, pathological changes in internal organs develop (cardiac cirrhosis of the liver, diffuse pneumosclerosis, congestive kidney syndrome). Metabolic disorders progress, depletion of body tissues develops.

Treatment of the disease of heart failure at this stage is usually ineffective. It helps to slow down the development of changes in internal organs, but does not entail a significant improvement in well-being.

Patients with stage 3 heart failure are not able to fully perform even everyday tasks (cooking, washing, cleaning). Patients are recognized as disabled.

The prognosis is poor: the disease can lead to death.

Diagnosis of heart failure

Before starting treatment, the doctor needs to find out the severity and nature of the disease.

First of all, you will need an examination by a therapist. Using a stethoscope, he listens to the lungs for wheezing, and also conducts a superficial examination to detect cyanosis of the skin. Will measure heart rate and blood pressure.

Sometimes tests are additionally performed to determine the reaction of the heart to physical activity.

Test	Progress	Evaluation of results
20 Squat Test	All heart rate measurements are taken in 1 minute. The heart rate is measured at rest in a sitting position (result No. 1 - P No. 1). The patient squats 20 times in 30 seconds. Measure the heart rate immediately after squatting (P # 2). Measure the heart rate after 1 minute (P # 3). Then after another 2 minutes (P # 4).	The reaction of the heart to stress: P # 2 is 25% more than P # 1 - excellent, 25-50% more is normal, 51% and more is bad. Heart recovery after exercise: P # 3 is close to P # 1 - excellent, P # 4 is close to P # 1 - normal, P # 4 is greater than P # 1 - bad.
Rufier-Dixon test	All heart rate measurements are taken in 15 seconds. The heart rate is measured after a 5-minute rest in the supine position (P1). The patient squats 30 times in 45 seconds. The heart rate is measured immediately after the load (P2) (the patient lies down after squatting). Wait 30 seconds. The last time the heart rate is measured in 15 seconds.	The result is calculated using the formula: (4 * (P1 + P2 + P3) - 200) / 10 Rating: less than 3 - excellent, from 3 to 6 - good, from 7 to 9 - normal, from 10 to 14 - bad, more than 15 - very bad. In patients with tachycardia, this test may give a biased poor result, so the first test is used.

The tests are used for patients in whom wheezing in the lungs is mild. If the tests give poor results, the patient is most likely to have heart failure. If wheezing in the lungs is severe, testing is not required.

When the initial examination by a therapist is over, he gives a referral to a cardiologist, who will conduct further diagnostics and prescribe treatment.

• ECG - will help identify pathologies of the heart rhythm.
• Daily ECG (Holter mounting or Holter) - electrodes are attached to the patient's body and a device is attached to the belt that records the work of the heart for 24 hours. The patient leads his usual way of life during these days. Such an examination helps to more accurately record arrhythmias if they manifest themselves in the form of seizures.
• (Ultrasound of the heart) - it is necessary to identify the structural pathologies of the heart.
• Chest X-ray. Helps to identify pathological changes in the lungs.
• Ultrasound of the liver, kidneys. If the patient has stage 2 or higher heart failure, it is necessary to diagnose these organs.

Methods for diagnosing heart pathologies

Sometimes you may need CT or MRI of the heart, blood vessels or other internal organs.

After receiving the results of these diagnostic methods, the cardiologist prescribes treatment. It can be both conservative and surgical.

Treatment

Drug therapy

Conservative treatment includes taking various groups of drugs:

Group of drugs	the effect	Examples of medicines
Cardiac glycosides	Maintain and improve the contractile function of the heart muscle	Digitoxin, Digoxin, Methyldigoxin, Strofantin K
Nitrates	Relieve pain in the chest, dilate veins	Nitroglycerine
ACE inhibitors	Reduce pressure, dilate blood vessels, reduce the risk of cardiac arrest	Captopril, Lisinopril, Fozinopril
Beta blockers	Reduce blood pressure, slow heart rate	Metoprolol, Atenolol
Calcium antagonists	Expand arteries, reduce pressure, eliminate arrhythmias	Verapamil, Cinnarizine, Diltiazem, Amlodipine, Nitrendipine
Diuretics	Remove excess fluid from the body, prevent the formation of edema, increase the effectiveness of drugs that reduce blood pressure	Spironol, Urakton, Furosemide, Aldactone
Other	Stimulates the metabolism in the myocardium	ATP, Riboxin, Carnitine

Heart Failure Drugs

If a patient has grade 1 heart failure, which appeared on the background of excessive physical exertion, the doctor may decide that the patient does not need to take serious medications yet. In this case, he will prescribe only medicines that improve the metabolism in the heart muscle, as well as B vitamins to strengthen the heart and blood vessels.

Surgery

For some congenital or acquired heart defects, drug treatment is ineffective. It can relieve symptoms for a short time, but does not affect the cause of the disease in any way.

Plant	Recipe
Digitalis purple - contains the substance digitoxin	Take 1.5 tsp. (1 g) dry leaves. Pour 1 tbsp. boiling water. Insist 12 hours. Take 1 tsp. 2 times a day. Note! Do not under any circumstances exceed the dosage. Foxglove is a plant that can be poisoned! With severe heart defects, after a heart attack, with stenosis of the coronary arteries and some types of arrhythmias, it is forbidden to use foxglove! Folk remedies, like medicines, can be hazardous to health if used incorrectly. Be sure to consult your doctor!
Foxglove Woolly - Contains Digoxin, Celanide
May lily of the valley - contains korglikon	Take 8-10 fresh flowers. Pour 1 tbsp. boiling water. Insist 1-2 hours. Drink in small portions throughout the day. Attention! Korglikon is contraindicated in WPW syndrome, as it causes tachycardia attacks.

Herbs for treating heart failure

Diet and lifestyle for heart failure

First of all, you should give up bad habits, if you have any. If you have heart failure of grade 2 or more, sports are contraindicated. Physicians recommend physiotherapy exercises, taking into account the patient's well-being.

The diet should also be adjusted:

To reduce swelling and reduce the load on the kidneys, reduce the amount of water (you can drink no more than 0.75-1 liters per day).

To prevent a large amount of blood from flowing to the head, it is recommended to sleep with a large pillow under your head. And for the prevention of edema, one more pillow is needed - it is placed under the feet.

Quite often people complain about. This symptom may indicate problems in the work of the cardiovascular system. Particular attention should be paid if shortness of breath occurs at rest. In this case, it is necessary to identify what led to the occurrence of this symptom and begin treatment.
Content:

Why shortness of breath occurs

In medical terminology, shortness of breath is called dyspnea. With shortness of breath, a person experiences a feeling of lack of air, the depth and frequency of breathing are disturbed. A person on the background of dyspnea feels embarrassment c.

At rest, a healthy person does not pay attention to breathing. It is normal for shortness of breath to occur with exercise. If a person does not feel discomfort at the same time and breathing is restored within a few minutes.

Breathing impairment at rest or when performing a light exercise, which becomes more pronounced, indicates pathological shortness of breath.

Breathing can be impaired due to various reasons:

• Metabolic disease
• Heart failure
• Respiratory system diseases
• Neurological

Shortness of breath can occur with medical conditions that interfere with normal breathing. In this case, the focus of inflammation is located behind the respiratory system. Such diseases include cirrhosis of the liver, osteochondrosis, diseases of the spine, or chest trauma.

Obesity also contributes to shortness of breath. The fatty layer that envelops the heart and lungs makes breathing difficult. In obese people, blood circulation is impaired, as a result, an insufficient amount of oxygen enters not only the heart, but also other important organs and systems.

With a decrease in the level of hemoglobin in the blood, anemia is diagnosed. Anemia develops with insufficient intake of iron, essential vitamins and proteins.

The development of vitamin deficiency anemia is facilitated by a deficiency of vitamin B12 and folic acid. As a result, shortness of breath, weakness, and rapid heartbeat appear.