THE ESSENTIAL
- Heart failure, which affects nearly 2 million French people and causes 70,000 deaths annually, remains underdiagnosed. A national free screening campaign, organized between September and December in 25 hospitals, aims to detect this disease early.
- The key symptoms, grouped under the acronym Epof (shortness of breath, weight gain, edema, fatigue), alert you to cardiac dysfunction. A rapid test makes it possible to identify suspected cases, which are then referred to a cardiologist.
- Treatments and lifestyle, particularly physical activity, are essential to slow the progression of this constantly increasing pathology.
In France, heart failure affects between 1.5 and 2 million people and causes around 200,000 hospitalizations and 70,000 deaths each year. And, with the aging of the population, the number of affected patients is expected to increase by 25% every four years. However, the disease remains underdiagnosed.
In this context, a national screening and awareness campaign was launched on Friday November 15 by the Heart Failure and Cardiomyopathies Group (GICC) of the French Society of Cardiology. 25 hospitals are participating by organizing a screening day in their reception halls, between September and December. The objective: to detect this disease early using simple tests and to raise awareness of its symptoms and treatment.
Recognize the warning signs of heart failure
The warning signs of heart failure are grouped under the acronym “Epof”:
–Eshortness of breath,
–Punexplained weight gain,
–Oedema (especially of the feet and ankles),
–Fatigue excessive.
These symptoms reflect “a pump fault” heart disease, explains Benoit Lequeux, head of the cardiological prevention unit at Poitiers University Hospital (which participated in the campaign), speaking to France Bleu. It’s like the engine isn’t working. So the blood doesn’t reach the different organs.” This insufficiency can lead to serious problems, such as arrhythmias or significant fluid retention, which can lead to fatal complications.
Screening is based on a symptom questionnaire and a blood test, carried out in a few minutes by fingerstick. This test measures the level of the biomarker NTproBNP, one of the main indicators of heart failure. In the event of suspicious results, patients are referred to a cardiologist. “It is very important to treat heart failure early to improve heart function. The Epof symptoms of this disease must also be known to the general public and doctors. A diagnostic error can be fatal”underlines cardiologist Emmanuelle Berthelot, president of the Heart Failure and Cardiomyopathies Group (GICC), in a press release.
Treatment: between treatments and lifestyle
Once diagnosed, the disease can be slowed through drug treatments as well as lifestyle interventions. These are based on a simple strategy, called “Epon”:
–Eregular physical exercise,
–Pweight gain monitored,
–Oobserve your prescribed treatment,
–NDon’t add salt to your diet.
Benoit Lequeux reminds us that sport remains the best way to prevent heart failure. “There is a frightening statistic, a study done on children between six and eleven years old. Of those who are physically inactive and who are overweight, two thirds will have a heart attack before the age of 30.”
