The body needs oxygen and various nutrients to function properly. These substances are delivered to all parts of the body when the heart pumps nutrient and oxygen rich blood into the aorta. From here, blood flows into other blood vessels which then carry the blood to different parts of the body. In cardiac or heart failure, the heart loses its ability to pump enough blood to meet the needs of the body.
Fatigue
The National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute says that in heart failure, the hearts pumping action gets weaker and weaker. When this happens, blood supply to the body is directed mostly to the heart and the brain and diverted away from parts of the body that perform less vital functions such as the muscles in the legs and hands. As a result, muscles needed to perform daily activities experience weakness and fatigue or tiredness occur. This signals cardiac failure.
Shortness of Breath
In cardiac failure, shortness of breath is experienced in various situations such as when lying down or during activities. Cardiac failure can happen on the left or right side of the heart. The left side of the heart receives oxygen-rich blood from the lungs which it then passes on to the aorta. Cardiac failure in the left side of the heart causes accumulation of blood in the left side of the heart. From here, the blood could back up into the lungs.
Excess fluid in the lungs impairs its ability to oxygenate blood and causes shortness of breath due to low oxygen levels in the body. A cardiac failure patient therefore experiences shortness of breath when lying down because blood accumulates in the lungs in this position.
Shortness of breath also happens during periods of activity because the body's tissues do not receive enough oxygen via blood. This is because the left side of the heart is too weak to pump out enough blood to the body.
Swelling in The Body
Swelling in parts of the body such as the ankles and feet is another effect of cardiac failure. This happens when cardiac failure occurs in the right side of the heart. De-oxygenated blood or blood that lacks oxygen from all parts of the body is sent to the right side of the heart. Once there, the blood is sent to the lungs for oxygenation.
In patients with right sided cardiac failure, however, blood may flow back into the body due to slowing down of blood flow from the right side of the heart to the lungs. When this happens, fluid accumulation occurs in various parts of the body and this manifests as swelling.
