Cardiomyopathy and Congestive Heart Failure are extremely common conditions that are responsible for millions of death around the globe. Cardiomyopathy belongs to the heterogeneous group of diseases that cause either mechanical or electrical dysfunction. The occurrence is due to several factors. They are part of multi-system disorder or confined to the heart alone that leads to cardiovascular death. Congestive heart failure, on the contrary, is the inability of the heart to pump the required quantity of the blood to meet the demands of the body.
What is Cardiomyopathy?
Cardiomyopathy belongs to the heterogeneous group of diseases. It associates with mechanical or electrical dysfunction that exhibits inappropriate dilatation. The reasons behind the occurrence is numerous, but primarily due to genetic problems. It leads to cardiovascular death.
There are Three Types Of Cardiomyopathy:
Dilated Cardiomyopathy – it occurs due to progressive cardiac dilatation with concomitant hypertrophy. Causes include genetic mutations, childbirth, iron overload, myocarditis, and alcohol abuse.
Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy – occurs due to genes, myocardial hypertrophy, and improper functioning of the left ventricular myocardium. They lead to abnormal diastolic filling and obstruct the intermittent ventricular outflow.
Restrictive Cardiomyopathy – it is the least occurrences of all and appears due to decrease in ventricular compliance, which results in an impaired ventricular filling. The causes include radiation fibrosis, amyloidosis , metastatic tumors, and sarcoidosis .
What is Congestive Heart Failure?
Congestive heart failure is the condition where the heart fails to pump the needed blood necessary for the body. When the body receives a poor inflow of the blood from the heart, several tissues and organs begin to function below their potential, making it impossible for an individual to possess the needed energy to indulge in regular activities. In many cases, the improper functioning leads to death, as the heart fails to receive oxygen and blood to the heart muscle.
The heart failure can occur to the left side or the right side.
Left Side Cardiac Failure: Left side cardiac failure occurs when the failure occurs due to improper functioning of the left ventricle. In such cases, the left ventricle fails in pumping with necessary force to pump the blood from the heart, as needed by the body. Due to this, the left chamber accumulates with blood that eventually leads to pulmonary edema and pulmonary hypertension. The causes of the same include hypertension, ischemic heart diseases, aortic valve diseases, and primary myocardial diseases.
Right Side Heart Failure: The primary reason for the failure of right side ventricle is because of left side heart failure. However, if the occurrence of the failure of the right side is due to pathology in the lungs, then it is cor pulmonale.
Treatments
The conventional treatments aim at reducing the effects caused due to the disease, for example, reducing the load on the heart and dilating the blood vessels. Although, they are helpful in improving the functionality of the heart, curing them is not always an easy task. Apart from the use of medicines, it is further essential for the patient to make changes to the diet and lifestyle.
The changes in the food intake and lifestyle vary from one to another, as they rely on the individual’s metabolism. The doctor refers to a therapist and dietician who will look after the program. They prepare it after viewing the reports and diagnosing the symptoms experienced by the patient. The program ensures that the patient is receiving appropriate care and shows improvement. With regular monitoring, it becomes possible for the individual to see a definite improvement in the health.
Conclusion
Cardiomyopathy and congestive heart failure are different. However, they are the two extremely common problems that are increasing the deaths due to the heart attack. Upon noticing the symptoms, it is essential for anybody to seek immediate medical attention to prevent further growth and seek treatment. With appropriate treatment, it is possible for an individual to see progress and lead a healthy life.