Man, 32, who survived heart failure warns of the underlying symptoms
Topics: Health, Life, Food and Drink
Mia Williams
Featured Image Credit: Orlando Health
Topics: Health, Life, Food and Drink
A dad has revealed the underlying symptoms of heart failure that he dismissed as 'anxiety', after issuing a warning about the condition.
Alex Balmes, a 32-year-old father from Orlando, is urging people to be aware that heart failure doesn't just wait for old age.
In fact, nearly 6.7 million Americans over the age of 20 are living with heart failure, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, yet many are unaware due to its surprisingly silent symptoms.
Many of the initial signs and symptoms are easy to pass off as a minor illness, but hundreds of thousands of lives are claimed by the condition each year.
Advert
Heart failure happens when the heart cannot pump enough blood and oxygen to support other organs in your body, but it does not mean that the heart has stopped beating.
"Once the patient is hospitalized for heart failure, the risk of death and rehospitalization goes up dramatically," Dr. John Jefferies, a board-certified cardiologist, said speaking to the New York Post.
Some of the common symptoms Balmes experienced include fatigue, shortness of breath, weight gain and bloating, and after initially dismissing signs, the 32-year-old finally had surgery to help his heart.
He received a left ventricular assist device (LVAD) implant, a procedure in which a battery-powered pump is placed in the patient’s chest to help pump blood through the body.
However, the surgery is only temporary until the dad can receive a transplant.
Patients typically recover from an LVAD implant within three months.
Dr. Jefferies noted that several factors can contribute to the risk of heart failure, including obesity, high blood pressure, diabetes, kidney disease and regular alcohol consumption.
He explained: "Much of what we are trying to accomplish is preservation of existing heart muscle function by stabilizing the condition through medical therapy and other interventions, along with lifestyle modifications."
And while Balmes is now back to playing with his little girl, many others are not so lucky.
Speaking with Orlando Health, he said: "I’ve just got to slow it down a little bit.
"I try to say, at least for me so young, I just got older faster."
Experts have urged people who experience any of the silent symptoms - fatigue, weight gain, shortness of breath, bloating or irregular heartbeat - that they should schedule an appointment with a cardiologist.