Chronic Kidney Disease

and Congestive Heart Failure

“You can set yourself up to be sick, or you can choose to stay well.” Wayne Dyer

Congestive heart failure (CHF) is an inability of the heart to provide sufficient pump action to distribute blood flow to meet the needs of the body. Heart failure is present when:

Both of these problems mean the heart is no longer able to pump enough oxygen-rich blood out to the rest of your body, especially when you exercise or are active. Heart failure can cause a number of symptoms including shortness of breath, leg swelling, and exercise intolerance. As the heart weakens, it is not a pretty sight. In case of Congestive Heart Failure the heart becomes weak, enlarged, congested and prolapsed. It is often as twice its normal size. When your heart weakens like this it actually stretches. As this takes place, the valves become stretched. This phenomenon is a major cause of leaking heart valves.

As heart becomes weaker, water builds up around the heart and fluid builds up in the lungs, liver, gastrointestinal tract and legs from the heart’s inability to pump properly. The weak heart is chronically congested. Since it cannot pump properly, it robs the body of blood, nutrition and oxygen. This is why the heart patient cannot walk to the mailbox without exhaustion and cannot think straight and are often spaced out. The brain is also starved for oxygen and nutrition.

Patients with CHF usually have much co-morbidity such as arterial hypertension, diabetes mellitus, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, anemia, gout, and renal insufficiency. Renal dysfunction is especially common in CHF patients.

We often hear sudden death of heart trouble, not kidney trouble. But you must realize that there are huge numbers of heart failure caused by kidney troubles.