Heart disease in the elderly, be careful of these symptoms!

Heart disease is a very serious disease. If you are not careful, it may take away the patient's precious life. Especially for some elderly men, heart disease must be prevented. But what kind of symptoms indicate heart disease? If you find the following symptoms, you should go to the hospital for examination and treatment in time.

(1) Difficulty breathing:

It is the main symptom of left heart failure that appears early: Exertional dyspnea most commonly occurs during heavy physical activities and can be relieved by rest. Nocturnal paroxysmal dyspnea often occurs at night. The patient suddenly wakes up, feels severe suffocation and terror, and sits up quickly. It takes 30 minutes or more to be relieved. It is usually accompanied by wheezing in both lungs, increased nervous tension, spasm of pulmonary bronchioles, elevation of the diaphragm when lying down, and decreased vital capacity. Dyspnea occurs quickly when lying down, usually within 1-2 minutes, and the pillow must be raised. When lying down, the amount of blood returning to the heart increases, and left heart failure increases the ventricular end-diastolic pressure, thereby further increasing the pulmonary vein and pulmonary capillary pressure, causing interstitial pulmonary edema, reducing lung compliance, increasing respiratory resistance and aggravating dyspnea. Acute pulmonary edema is a further development of cardiogenic asthma.

(2) Cough, sputum and hemoptysis

Coughing is an early symptom, often occurring at night, and can be relieved or stopped when sitting or standing. Sputum is usually serous and white and foamy, sometimes with blood in it. If the pulmonary capillary pressure is very high or there is pulmonary edema, plasma will seep into the alveoli, resulting in pink foamy sputum.

(3) Decreased physical strength, fatigue, and weakness

These symptoms are common in almost all patients with heart failure. The most common cause is dyspnea after pulmonary congestion, and the inability to increase cardiac output normally after exercise. The decrease in cardiac output leads to insufficient perfusion of tissues and organs. Elderly people may experience mental symptoms such as confusion, memory loss, anxiety, insomnia, and hallucinations. Arterial pressure is generally normal, but pulse pressure decreases.

(4) Urinary system symptoms

When blood flow is redistributed in left heart failure, increased nocturia will occur early. In severe left heart failure, cardiac output will be severely reduced. Renal blood flow is reduced, resulting in oliguria, or increased blood urea nitrogen and creatinine with corresponding manifestations of renal insufficiency.