Heart failure is the leading cause of death in the United States and while there is little that can be done to change the history of a person’s diet, exercise, and caring for their health, there are some important steps that can be taken now to improve elderly care and help alleviate the risks and symptoms involved in heart failure.
If your loved one has been diagnosed with heart failure, the doctor has likely discussed a number of the options that are available to him or her. Bypass surgery is the most common treatment for heart failure. This is a process in which blood is routed around a blocked artery.
If the cause of heart failure is a failing heart valve, then surgery can be an option to strengthen the valve to allow it to close properly, which will help reduce the chances of leakage, in which the blood flows back out of the valve into the one prior.
A heart transplant is for patients whose hearts cannot be repaired through any other type of treatment.
Aside from these and a few other basic options, there are steps that can be taken at home and which an elderly care provider can assist with that can help to improve your loved one’s health. One of the most important is that if the elderly patient smokes, then it’s time for him or her to seriously consider quitting. They may be inclined to continue smoking, believing that there’s nothing that they can do to improve their health, but in truth, by quitting smoking they will be able to improve their health right away.
Another thing that they can do is to eat properly. When you eat right and get the right nutrients in your system, this can have a dramatic impact on your heart health, as well as other organs in the body.
Getting exercise can also be important for some people who suffer from heart failure. It’s important to discuss any exercise with his or her doctor prior to beginning any type of regimen, even if it’s going for short walks on a daily basis.
Finally, monitoring symptoms is crucial. Weighing the elderly patient every day can help to indicate fluid building up in the system, which can be a symptom of heart failure. Also checking other vital statistics such as pulse rate and blood pressure can be equally important.
When your loved one has been diagnosed with heart failure, making sure that he or she gets the best elderly care can make all the difference in the world to them as well as you and your family.
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