1. < Heart & Blood Health

Stage 1 diastolic heart failure

Posted by pleasant7 @pleasant7, Apr 15, 2022

I’m new here. I’ve just completed an echocardiogram nd chemical stress test due to chest pains and shortness of breath. The stress test showed no ischemia but an ejection fraction of 75%. The echocardiogram showed a small left matrium with impaired filling indicative of diastolic stage 1 failure. Also I have moderate hypokinesis n the basal anteroseptal segments. I don’t see my doctor for another 3 weeks because I’m wearing a heart monitor and by then I can get those results too. What questions should I ask? Could I have Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy? I have a family history of sudden cardiac death in my family. What other tests should I anticipate or request? I’m a 63 year old woman, 30lbs overweight and diabetic. Thank you.

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Mentor
Jennifer, Volunteer Mentor | @jenniferhunter | Apr 15, 2022

@pleasant7 Welcome to Connect. My dad had heart disease for many years including heart attack, heart failure and an electrical malfunction. He also had Type 2 diabetes which is linked to heart disease. Has your cardiologist explained how diabetes affects the heart and what steps you can take with dietary changes to improve your health? That is something you can control and a support group for healthy eating may help you.

Here is some Mayo Clinic information about a diet for diabetes
https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/diabetes/in-depth/diabetes-diet/art-20044295
https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/diabetes/expert-answers/diabetes/faq-20058545
https://myheart.net/articles/choosing-the-right-sources-of-carbohydrates-is-essential-for-preventing-cardiovascular-disease/
I found a link that explains a lot about heart issues that illustrates everything with moving imaging. There is still a lot of terminology to look up, but here it is: https://myheart.net/articles/heart-function-including-ejection-fraction-ef/

What comes to my mind if the left atrium is not filling enough would be a question of if the valves are operating correctly. The left side of the heart brings oxygenated blood from the lungs through valves into the L atrium, and from there blood passes through more valves into the L ventricle which pumps it out to the rest of the body. The valves prevent back flow of blood and close under normal circumstances briefly before opening again.

This link from the Texas Heart Institute explains a lot about heart failure, medications and treatment.
https://www.texasheart.org/heart-health/heart-information-center/topics/heart-failure/
This explains Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy
https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/hypertrophic-cardiomyopathy/symptoms-causes/syc-20350198
This link has a lot of resources about cardiac tests. https://myheart.net/tests-investigations/

I did at one time have chest pains that turned out to be stress related, but because my dad was a heart patient, I went to a cardiologist for a full work up and had the treadmill stress test, echo cardiogram, and a nuclear test that shows the way the heart beats in 3 D imaging. I know it will be hard to wait for your test results, but only your cardiologist and heart specialists can give you a diagnosis and tell you how your heart disease is progressing as well as what interventions could change the direction toward better health. I think the first question I would ask is what can I do and what changes in lifestyle and diet can I make to better my health?

How are you managing your diabetes?

REPLY
1 reply
pleasant7 | @pleasant7 | Apr 15, 2022
In reply to @jenniferhunter "@pleasant7 Welcome to Connect. My dad had heart disease for many years including heart attack, heart..." + (show)
@jenniferhunter

@pleasant7 Welcome to Connect. My dad had heart disease for many years including heart attack, heart failure and an electrical malfunction. He also had Type 2 diabetes which is linked to heart disease. Has your cardiologist explained how diabetes affects the heart and what steps you can take with dietary changes to improve your health? That is something you can control and a support group for healthy eating may help you.

Here is some Mayo Clinic information about a diet for diabetes
https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/diabetes/in-depth/diabetes-diet/art-20044295
https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/diabetes/expert-answers/diabetes/faq-20058545
https://myheart.net/articles/choosing-the-right-sources-of-carbohydrates-is-essential-for-preventing-cardiovascular-disease/
I found a link that explains a lot about heart issues that illustrates everything with moving imaging. There is still a lot of terminology to look up, but here it is: https://myheart.net/articles/heart-function-including-ejection-fraction-ef/

What comes to my mind if the left atrium is not filling enough would be a question of if the valves are operating correctly. The left side of the heart brings oxygenated blood from the lungs through valves into the L atrium, and from there blood passes through more valves into the L ventricle which pumps it out to the rest of the body. The valves prevent back flow of blood and close under normal circumstances briefly before opening again.

This link from the Texas Heart Institute explains a lot about heart failure, medications and treatment.
https://www.texasheart.org/heart-health/heart-information-center/topics/heart-failure/
This explains Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy
https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/hypertrophic-cardiomyopathy/symptoms-causes/syc-20350198
This link has a lot of resources about cardiac tests. https://myheart.net/tests-investigations/

I did at one time have chest pains that turned out to be stress related, but because my dad was a heart patient, I went to a cardiologist for a full work up and had the treadmill stress test, echo cardiogram, and a nuclear test that shows the way the heart beats in 3 D imaging. I know it will be hard to wait for your test results, but only your cardiologist and heart specialists can give you a diagnosis and tell you how your heart disease is progressing as well as what interventions could change the direction toward better health. I think the first question I would ask is what can I do and what changes in lifestyle and diet can I make to better my health?

How are you managing your diabetes?

Jump to this post

Thanks so much. My diabetes is managed well and I don’t require insulin. I’ve been diabetic for many years so I am well versed on diabetes and it’s affects in the body. I am slowly losing weight with diet. The reason the left atrium is having difficulty is due to the entire wall being moderately thick and stiff, therefore

REPLY
1 reply
pleasant7 | @pleasant7 | Apr 15, 2022
In reply to @pleasant7 "Thanks so much. My diabetes is managed well and I don’t require insulin. I’ve been diabetic..." + (show)
@pleasant7

Thanks so much. My diabetes is managed well and I don’t require insulin. I’ve been diabetic for many years so I am well versed on diabetes and it’s affects in the body. I am slowly losing weight with diet. The reason the left atrium is having difficulty is due to the entire wall being moderately thick and stiff, therefore

Jump to this post

Sorry I accidentally pushed the send button before I was finished with my comment! What I was trying to say is that the wall of the left atrium is moderately thick. That has made the left atrium smaller. Also the wall is stiffer and not contracting properly. It is a frightening diagnosis to read that you have heart failure even if it is only stage one. I have done a lot of reading about diastolic heart failure and there are confusing treatment available. I’m just wondering if anyone else on the forum has had this experience and can shed some light on it for me.

REPLY
1 reply
Mentor
Jennifer, Volunteer Mentor | @jenniferhunter | Apr 15, 2022
In reply to @pleasant7 "Sorry I accidentally pushed the send button before I was finished with my comment! What I..." + (show)
@pleasant7

Sorry I accidentally pushed the send button before I was finished with my comment! What I was trying to say is that the wall of the left atrium is moderately thick. That has made the left atrium smaller. Also the wall is stiffer and not contracting properly. It is a frightening diagnosis to read that you have heart failure even if it is only stage one. I have done a lot of reading about diastolic heart failure and there are confusing treatment available. I’m just wondering if anyone else on the forum has had this experience and can shed some light on it for me.

Jump to this post

@pleasant7 I wasn't aware that we had a Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy group on Connect, but we do. I just found it. There are various discussions there were you can probably find other members experiencing similar issues. I wanted to make sure you were welcomed to Connect, so I jumped in with some information. Those links will help others who find your first post too.

Here is the group information.
https://connect.mayoclinic.org/group/hypertrophic-cardiomyopathy-hcm/
Here is a discussion where you may introduce yourself.
https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/hcm-ers-introduce-yourself-or-just-say-hi/

REPLY
pleasant7 | @pleasant7 | Apr 15, 2022

Thanks so much! I appreciate the information. ❤️

REPLY
feelingthankful | @feelingthankful | Apr 18, 2022

Did you have a period of long-standing high blood pressure prior? Or any blood pressure issues now or prior? I believe that can be one path. They key to avoid progression may be managing all your risk factors for heart disease.

REPLY
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