Preventing Heart Failure [Video]

More than 6 million Americans have heart failure. “What heart failure is, is essentially a weakness of heart muscle, where it is not efficiently pumping blood, and therefore delivering oxygen and nutrients to the body,” said Dr. Katherine Leitz.

Coronary artery disease is a major cause, however, “There are multiple other things that can cause weakness of heart muscle, such as hormonal imbalance, valvular abnormalities, autoimmune disease, genetic conditions,” said Dr. Leitz.

People with cardiovascular risk factors like hypertension, obesity, high cholesterol, and sleep apnea should be extra aware. The predominant symptom is fluid retention. “These patients accumulate fluid in the lungs and in their body, causing shortness of breath with exertion, abdominal bloating, and leg swelling,” said Dr. Leitz. “The evaluation for heart failure is very simple. All it includes is ultrasound of the heart and a lab test.”

Dr. Lietz oversees Lee Health’s Advanced Heart Failure program. “That provides comprehensive evaluation and management of patients with heart failure. And we take care of all spectrums of heart failure, from patients who are not symptomatic to patients who are very severely ill and at stage of disease.”

It can be managed with lifestyle modifications and medication. “The medical therapy for heart failure is intended to improve patients’ quality of life, reduce hospitalizations, and improve overall survival.” Visit leehealth.org/heart to learn more.

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Lee Health in Fort Myers, FL is the largest network of health care facilities in Southwest Florida and is highly respected for its expertise, innovation and quality of care. For more than 100 years, we’ve been providing our community with personalized preventative health services and primary care to highly specialized care services and robotic assisted surgeries.

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