The weak heart mainly affects the elderly

The weak heart mainly affects the elderly

09/11/2013

Not always is breathlessness harmless. It can often be a sign of a weak heart. Especially older people are affected by this weakness, heart failure.

Shortness of breath at rest a warning signal
Mild shortness of breath after hard physical work or sports are basically nothing unusual. The heart, the largest human muscle, is then engaged in increased pumping power. But if one gets less air even in the dormant state or the heart begins to race, this can indicate a heart failure. Heart failure usually occurs after a heart attack, heart failure, or vasoconstriction. Long-standing high blood pressure or myocarditis also promote permanent damage to the heart.

Heart failure is usually not taken seriously
Nationwide, the number of people affected is estimated at two to three million. According to the German Heart Foundation, nearly 400,000 people a year in Germany are hospitalized because of this dangerous heart disease. About 50,000 patients die as a result. The number is so high because the heart failure is usually not taken seriously, so the cardiologist Michael Böhm, University of Saarland and Advisory Board member of the German Heart Foundation. He warns: „Patients do not perceive symptoms such as shortness of breath, poor performance, water retention of the joints, or delay age.“

Recognize disease early
Even GPs would sometimes pay too little attention to the symptoms. Böhm explains: „Initially only great efforts cause complaints, later small ones.“ And so it is particularly important to become aware of the disease early on, otherwise the pumping power of the heart will continue to decrease. Doctors can detect heart failure using an ultrasound or electrocardiogram (ECG). „But there is one more type of heart failure that is less easy to detect. It occurs when the heart is less elastic. When pumping, the heart has to contract and relax for a moment. If the heart is too stiff, the blood can not absorb enough blood during the relaxation phase. However, this type of heart failure can be detected by measuring hormones in the blood“, so Dr. Reinhard Jochheim, specialist in internal medicine at the clinic Blankenstein in Hattingen in North Rhine-Westphalia.

Elderly affected
In Germany, between 45 and 55 year olds suffer from less than one percent of heart failure. Of the 65- to 75-year-olds, between two and five percent are already affected and almost ten percent of the over 80s. Nevertheless, it is not a purely typical aging phenomenon. The cardiologist Böhm also points out that heart failure is caused by more illnesses, especially high blood pressure. „A chronic pressure load of the heart can lead to a thickening of the heart muscle“, so Böhm. In addition, he could lose elasticity and thus pumping power.

Sport is one of the best remedies
„Of course it needs a treatment of the underlying diseases such as high blood pressure“, so Böhm. Sometimes surgery or other measures are needed, but one of the best medicines is sport. Because basically applies in heart failure: exercise can help. Böhm also says that affected people should move, just because their heart is weakened. The heart learns with the help of dosed training, to work economically and thus to provide the body with more blood. An interval training is helpful here, for example on a bicycle ergometer. Nordic walking, hiking or cross-country skiing are other suitable sports. „Patients should discuss with their cardiologist how they can strengthen their body with training“, so Böhm.

Care programs are developed
Anyone who suffers from a heart muscle weakness, must observe his illness in any case exactly. For example, a weight gain of two kilos overnight may indicate a dangerous accumulation of water in the body and a doctor must be turned on. Medical care programs are also being developed to avoid frequent hospitalizations. This is done by telemedicine, among other things, whereby the patients record their medical values ​​at home and send the data to the doctor. Böhm explains: „How valuable these concepts are, however, must first be shown by scientific studies.“

Herzwochen in November
Prevention is still the best method. „The risk factors for heart disease are still smoking, poor diet and lack of exercise“, so Böhm. Getting these problems under control is also the concern of the German Heart Foundation. From the first to the thirtieth of November, more than 1,000 high-quality lectures and seminars on the topic of heart failure will take place during the Heart Weeks. (Ad)