Symptoms, signs, and etiologies of heart failure

Symptoms

• Dyspnea, nocturnal dyspnea, orthopnea.
• Cough, frothy sputum.
• Oppression.

Signs

• Tachycardia.
• Turgor jugular.
• Crackles
• Prolonged expiration, sibilance.
• S4 and S3 on cardiac auscultation.

After starting treatment seeking an etiology:

1. Cardiomyopathy of recent onset
2. Ischemic heart disease
3. Hypertenive crisis / Pheochromocytoma
4. Valvulopathy
5. Tamponnade
6. Congenital heart disease
7. Pulmonary emboli
8. Atrial myxoma
9. Intracranial bleeding
10. High cardiac output (fistula, anemia, Paget, béri-béri, dysthyroiditis).

Treatment