I come with a topic today that I have seen recently that I'm sure you have heard about. Recently an acquaintance asked me for support for her mom, because she was having trouble breathing and even though she was nebulizing and putting on dexamethasone she was not getting better.
These medicines were self-medicated, thinking that since a close relative had a similar symptomatology, I could help her too. But little by little she was edematizing (she talks about fluid retention) and worsening the respiratory picture, which made me think of a renal failure, but when she told me that in one month she had put 47 ampoules of the steroid dexamethasone, I said, wow, that's crazy.
But finally everything was caused by a cardiac failure, since he presents a Cardiomegaly, do you know what I mean?, if not I invite you to continue reading, what I am going to tell you will surely interest you.
How can we define cardiomegaly?
Cardiomegaly is a condition in which the heart becomes enlarged and larger than normal. This can be caused by a variety of factors, such as heart disease itself, hypertension, parasitic diseases such as Chagas disease, or the use of certain medications.
Symptoms of cardiomegaly can include fatigue, shortness of breath and swelling in the legs and feet.
Now, I particularly know that the lady has high blood pressure and never knew it, until now that she had it checked out, but cardiomegaly is visible only by imaging studies, so I ordered a PA and Lateral chest x-ray, what a surprise I got.
The lady's heart was almost twice the normal size, as can be seen in the following image.
The increase in size is evident. At least for me that I am adapted to see normal X-rays.
I wanted to share this image that you can see on the right to give you a reference of what a normal sized heart looks like on a chest x-ray. Now, if you go to the image above you will notice the big difference much easier.
Unfortunately this is not reversible most of the time, however, the symptoms can be treated and give the patient a better quality of life.
By the way, although I know the protocol of care in these cases, the ideal is to be treated by a specialist in Cardiology, therefore, I referred her to that specialist to receive the best possible treatment and improve as soon as possible.
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Symptoms of cardiomegaly may include:
- Fatigue.
- Shortness of breath.
- Swelling in the legs, abdomen, and other places.
- Irregular heartbeat.
They were all these symptoms that the lady presented. It should be noted that she is a young woman, only 45 years old, with very pronounced smoking habits since the age of 17 and who gave them up 5 months ago.
It is always necessary to ask patients a lot of questions to try to find a possible cause, and thus be able to reach a diagnosis and finally help them as far as possible, always investigate these possible reasons:
- Arterial hypertension: in the case of it is present.
- Congenital heart disease, apparently not, however, this will be determined later by the cardiologist.
- Acquired heart disease, such as coronary artery disease or heart failure. This could be present, as the patient was a long-time smoker, which is well known what smoking can do to the airways as well as the cardiovascular system.
- Infections of the heart, such as endocarditis, in this case the patient did not report anything in particular, neither did dental attendance, as this can be a cause of endocarditis, especially in the face of some surgical procedures.
- Connective tissue disorders, such as scleroderma. Denies.
- Excessive use of steroid drugs, this was present, as he self-medicated a large amount of steroids for a long time.
- Respiratory diseases such as COPD, which she probably has, as she was a smoker. In this case she should also be evaluated by a pulmonologist.
A common question from patients with this condition, and their family members, is can cardiomegaly be cured?.
Unfortunately cardiomegaly cannot be cured on its own, as it is a condition that occurs as a result of another underlying medical condition. However, treatment of cardiomegaly can help control the underlying disease and reduce the size of the heart.
Treatment of cardiomegaly may include medications, surgery or lifestyle changes. Medications may include diuretics to reduce swelling or edema, medications to control blood pressure, and medications to treat underlying heart disease, such as coronary artery disease or heart failure.
Surgery may be necessary if there are blockages in the arteries of the heart or if there are problems with the heart valves. Lifestyle changes, such as exercising regularly, eating a healthy diet and quitting smoking (fortunately you have quit), may also be helpful in controlling the underlying disease and reducing the size of the heart.
Note: It is important to follow your doctor's recommendations and treat the underlying disease to control cardiomegaly and prevent serious complications.
It is difficult to tell people that what they have can never be completely eliminated, but it is hopeful to at least be able to tell them that they can have a better life because they have a diagnosis. This is usually caused by bad lifestyle habits, such as poor diet (rich in fats) or by smoking, alcohol, etc. I think this is one more reason to stay away from this and take care of yourself a little more.
If you have anything else to add I would appreciate it, since that way we all help each other.
