The heart and lungs are interconnected, so often the diseases of one organ affect the state of another. A vivid example of such an interaction is heart asthma. An acute condition that manifests itself as a pronounced breathing difficulty and in severe cases can cause pulmonary edema, in fact caused by myocardial problems. MedAboutMe will tell you what provokes an attack, what kind of emergency care the patient needs and how to prevent exacerbations.
Cardiovascular work
Cardiac asthma is an acute condition that occurs against the background of failure of the left heart chambers. These departments are responsible for collecting arterial blood from the lungs. If the contractility of the myocardium decreases, a certain amount of blood may be retained in the left ventricle. This leads to a violation of hemodynamics in the small circle of the cardiovascular system, as a result of which pressure in the veins of the lungs increases, the walls of the capillaries become more permeable, and through them blood plasma enters the lung tissue. This fluid causes swelling, disrupts the organs respiration, affects gas exchange and leads to the characteristic symptoms – attacks of suffocation. Most often they develop at night, because the stagnation of blood in the lungs is formed faster in the supine position. But in some cases, severe shortness of breath may develop during wakefulness, after stress or excessive physical exertion.
According to statistics, such attacks alarm 1-5% of the total population and are more common in patients older than 60 years. This is due to the fact that by old age the cardiovascular system begins to work worse, various diseases arise, and the myocardium simply cannot cope with its functions.
Causes of Cardiac Asthma: Heart Disease and Other
Since cardiac asthma is directly related to the pathology of the left ventricle, seizures can speak about the primary disease – left ventricular failure. However, most often it is still a consequence of other heart problems. Suffocation may occur in patients with the following diagnoses:
- Coronary heart disease. In this case, the attack may develop during myocardial infarction.
- Vices, in particular, pathology of valves and aorta.
- Chronic heart failure.
- Inflammatory diseases, especially myocarditis.
- Tumors, blood clots in the cavities of the heart or vessels of the small circle.
- Cardiosclerosis.
- Arterial hypertension.
- Aneurysm of the heart.
The development of cardiac asthma can cause illness, leading to fluid retention. First of all, we are talking about kidney diseases. As a result of such disorders , the blood volume in the cardiovascular system increases and the pressure in the lungs may increase.
These diseases do not always lead to severe shortness of breath. Doctors note that exacerbations are most often found on the background of provoking factors. Among them:
- Overwork.
- Excessive physical exertion.
- Stress, nervous tension.
- Alcohol.
- Excessive fluid intake.
Symptoms: severe shortness of breath and other breathing problems
An attack of cardiac asthma usually develops at night. This is due to the fact that in the supine position, the heart copes worse with the pumping of blood, and the pressure in the vessels of the lungs rises. At the same time, many patients note that precursors are observed before an exacerbation in 2-3 days – the first minor symptoms. Among them:
- Pressing discomfort in the chest.
- Slight dyspnea, which may occur after a heavy meal, walking at a fast pace and other things.
- Cough, especially after exercise.
During the attack itself, the patient develops the following asthma symptoms:
- Severe shortness of breath, turning into choking. At the same time, breathing is difficult on the inhale, it is difficult for a person to fill the lungs with air, he can hardly speak. The symptom is significantly enhanced if a person assumes a horizontal position (orthopnea) – so the cardiovascular system cannot correctly redistribute blood.
- Strong dry cough. This is a reflex reaction to swelling of the mucous membranes of the respiratory tract – so the body tries to clear the bronchi and lungs. But since breathing is difficult not because of the stagnation of mucus, coughing does not bring relief and can be quite long.
- Change in skin color. A person has a white face, if respiratory failure is expressed strongly, a nasolabial triangle may turn blue.
- Copious cold sweat.
- Swelling of the veins in the neck (a sign of insufficient heart function).
In addition, during an attack, a person is extremely excited, he may panic, he has a fear of death. Such emotional reactions are quite natural, so it is important for loved ones to calm the patient and quickly give first aid.
First aid for a seizure
The first thing that others should do during a heart attack of asthma is to call an ambulance. You need to be prepared for the fact that the patient will be hospitalized – inpatient treatment is indicated in almost all cases of cardiac asthma.
From a severe attack, the orthopnea man abruptly wakes up and sits down. It is very important that this body position is maintained, because in the prone position, the symptoms of cardiac asthma will only increase. The legs must be released from the bed – this is the way to ensure the flow of blood from the lungs to the extremities. The patient should not try to get up, during respiratory insufficiency muscular weakness can manifest itself, the person simply will not stand and may fall.
A hot foot bath will also help reduce the pressure in the vessels of the lungs. Increased temperature contributes to the flow of blood, so a significant amount of it will descend to the lower part of the body.
In some cases, it is recommended the imposition of harnesses – they help to hold the blood in the limbs and reduce the pressure in the small circle of the cardiovascular system. However, if relatives do not know how to do the procedure, it is better to refuse it, because improper application of the harness can worsen the situation. When a person feels a little better and he can take the medicine, you can give a nitroglycerin tablet.
Prevention rules: nutrition, regimen
To avoid new attacks, a person needs to pay attention to heart health. It is important to undergo a full examination and identify the cause of left ventricular failure, because the treatment of the underlying disease is the main component of proper therapy.
An important role is played by lifestyle. The general rules of prevention will help eliminate the risk of cardiac asthma and its complications:
- Weight loss.
- Sufficient sleep (better to use high pillows).
- Moderate exercise (which ones are suitable, the attending physician can advise).
- Quitting smoking, alcohol.
It is very important to pay attention to the diet. power supply the patient. In case of heart failure, it is recommended to observe the correct drinking regimen – the total amount of fluid per day should not exceed 1.5 liters. In addition, it is worth to be from too salty foods, to arrange salt-free days, because excess sodium retains water in the body and increases the risk of edema. Overeating is extremely harmful.
People who have had seizures, it is important to pay attention to blood pressure. Hypertension is bad for the heart as a whole and significantly increases the risk of developing asthma.