It is called "congestive" heart failure because when the heart does not work effectively as a
pump, blood becomes congested in the circulatory system.
In order to understand the pulmonary causes of congestive heart failure it is
important to understand how the heart and lung anatomy are related.
The heart and lungs work together. Lung diseases almost always have the
potential to affect the heart and vice versa.
Blood that needs to drop off carbon dioxide and pick up fresh oxygen is pumped to the lungs
from the right side of the heart. It is the right side of the heart that is most affected by increased
pressure in the lungs (pulmonary hypertension).
Once gas exchange takes place blood returns to
the left side of the heart where it is pumped out and distributed to the entire body delivering the much needed
oxygen.
If the pressure in the lungs increases (pulmonary hypertension) then over time the heart muscle
becomes larger and larger as it adapts to this increased
workload. Eventually the muscle weakens and right sided heart failure occurs.
If the right side of the heart is failing it cannot empty efficiently with each contraction and the
venous ciculatory system becomes congested.
When venous blood becomes congested then the left side of the heart has a difficult time pumping against that
pressure and will eventually fail.
Smoking Facts About the Pulmonary Causes of Congestive Heart Failure
(the really short version in four sentences)
The smoking disease of emphysema gets started by long term cigarette smoking.
These four sentences describe right sided heart failure and how it results from pulmonary hypertension.
It is possible to develop pulmonary hypertension in the absence of smoking cigarettes (this is called primary pulmonary
hypertension), however, by far the most common pulmonary causes of congestive heart failure is smoking.
The smoking disease of emphysema is the direct cause of cor pulmonale.
Almost everyone who develops emphysema will have some degree of right sided heart failure.
The purpose of the information provided here is to help you cooperate with your doctor and other
health practitioners. It is not intended to take the place of medical advice and you are encouraged to
discuss health concerns with your physician or a professional health care provider who is
familiar with you and your unique personal health context.
