1. Heart Disease (Coronary Artery Disease) Slideshow Pictures
2. Slideshow: Atrial Fibrillation Causes, Tests, and Treatment
3. Take the Heart Disease Quiz!

Medical Author:

Terrence X O'Brien, MD, FACC

Medical Editor:

Charles Patrick Davis, MD, PhD

Charles Patrick Davis, MD, PhD

Dr. Charles "Pat" Davis, MD, PhD, is a board certified Emergency Medicine doctor who currently practices as a consultant and staff member for hospitals. He has a PhD in Microbiology (UT at Austin), and the MD (Univ. Texas Medical Branch, Galveston). He is a Clinical Professor (retired) in the Division of Emergency Medicine, UT Health Science Center at San Antonio, and has been the Chief of Emergency Medicine at UT Medical Branch and at UTHSCSA with over 250 publications.

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Often cardiologists, who specialize in heart failure, can work together with primary care doctors and other health care providers to diagnose and treat congestive heart failure. Certain symptoms need to be checked by a doctor. If a person has any of the symptoms listed below, they should call their health care provider for an appointment. If symptoms listed below are severe or of sudden onset, seek immediate emergency care.

• Shortness of breath that seems to be getting worse or causes difficulty sleeping.
• Waking up at night with shortness of breath.
• Sleep is better in a semi-upright position in a chair or recliner than flat in bed.
• Shortness of breath develops with mild exertion and is worse than usual.
• Unusual fatigue that is not relieved with rest.
• A dry cough that will not go away or seems otherwise unusual.
• Swelling in the ankles, feet, or legs that does not go away.

Other, more subtle symptoms of heart failure that are also seen in other diseases warrant a visit to a health care provider, especially if linked to any of the symptoms already listed above. These include:

• Abdominal bloating or discomfort
• Persistently pale skin
• Poor appetite

Always take chest pain seriously. Congestive heart failure, per se, usually does not cause chest pain. However, remember other serious conditions that cause chest pain, such as angina and myocardial infarction, can coexist with heart failure.

If these symptoms develop quickly or worsen rapidly, seek emergency treatment.

• Shortness of breath
• Severe, unrelieved chest pain
• Swelling in the legs that becomes painful, even in one leg
• Fainting or near-fainting

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