Heart Failure Diagnosis

To gather a detailed heart failure diagnosis, your physician would look at your clinical history. They would look for symptoms such as breathlessness, chest pain, palpitations and lethargy. They would carry out a thorough physical examination looking specifically for signs of fluid build-up in the legs and the lungs. It would be important to take into account other health conditions including: diabetes, kidney disease, hypertension, coronary artery disease, arrhythmia, valvular heart disease, family history of sudden death, chemotherapy, radiation and drug therapy.

The tests that may be considered include:

• Blood tests- these may include assessment for anaemia, kidney function, cholesterol levels and thyroid function. It may also include NT-pro BNP blood test- a level more than 450pg/mL (in under 50 year olds) or 900pg/mL (in over 50 year olds) could mean you have heart failure.
• Echocardiogram
• Cardiac catheterisation
• Chest x-ray
• Electrocardiogram (ECG)

The process of coronary artery disease starts at a young age. Evidence of cholesterol
deposition can be seen in your teens. With increasing age, the fat deposits build up,
damaging the blood vessel walls. Other substances moving through the blood steam, such as inflammatory cells, cellular waste products, proteins and calcium attach to the vessel walls forming cholesterol plaque.

The most common symptom of coronary artery disease is angina. This can be experienced as chest discomfort, heaviness, tightness, pressure, an ache or squeezing sensation. It can be mistaken for indigestion or heartburn. The pain can radiate to the shoulder, arms, neck or jaw. Associated symptoms can include: breathlessness, sweating, dizziness, nausea, extreme weakness and fatigue.