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Your doctor will diagnose heart failure based on your medical and family histories, a physical exam, and results from one or more tests: electrocardiogram (EKG), chest x ray, B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP) blood test, echocardiography, Doppler ultrasound, Holter monitor, nuclear heart scan, cardiac catheterization, coronary angiography, stress testing, cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and thyroid function tests.

The most common signs and symptoms of heart failure are shortness of breath, fatigue, and swelling in the ankles, feet, legs, abdomen, and veins in the neck.

Heart failure is more common in people age 65 or older, blacks, people who are overweight, and people who have had a heart attack. Children who have congenital heart defects also can develop heart failure.

Conditions that damage or overwork the heart muscle can cause the heart to weaken, including coronary heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, other heart conditions, and other factors.

Heart failure is a condition in which the heart can't pump enough blood to meet the body's needs because it can't fill with enough blood and/or can't pump blood to the rest of the body with enough force.

Certain risk factors make it more likely that you'll develop coronary heart disease and have a heart attack. Risk factors you can control include smoking, high blood pressure, high blood cholesterol, overweight and obesity, unhealthy diet, lack of physical activity, and high blood sugar due to insulin resistance or diabetes. Risk factors you can’t control include age, family history of early heart disease, and preeclampsia.

A heart attack happens when the flow of oxygen-rich blood to a section of heart muscle suddenly becomes blocked and the heart can’t get oxygen. If you think you or someone else may be having heart attack symptoms or a heart attack, call 9–1–1 for emergency medical care.

Understanding the DASH eating plan will help you start and follow this plan for life.

Three NHLBI-funded trials showed the health benefits of the DASH diet, such as lowering high blood pressure and LDL cholesterol in the blood, and shaped the final DASH eating plan recommendations.

DASH is a flexible and balanced eating plan that helps create a heart-healthy eating style for life.

If you have carotid artery disease, you can take steps to manage the condition, reduce risk factors, and prevent complications by making lifestyle changes, following your treatment plan, and getting ongoing care. Know the stroke warning signs and call 9–1–1 for emergency help if you think you are having a stroke.

Your doctor will diagnose carotid artery disease based on your medical history, a physical exam, and results from one or more tests: ultrasound, angiography, magnetic resonance angiography (MRA), and computed tomography (CT) angiography.

Carotid artery disease seems to start when damage occurs to the inner layers of the carotid arteries. The buildup of plaque or blood clots can severely narrow or block the carotid arteries, which limits the flow of oxygen-rich blood to your brain.

Carotid artery disease is a disease in which a waxy substance called plaque builds up inside the carotid arteries in either side of the neck. The common carotid arteries divide into internal carotid arteries, which supply oxygen-rich blood to your brain, and external carotid arteries, which supply oxygen-rich blood to your face, scalp, and neck.

You can't prevent inherited types of cardiomyopathy. You can take steps to lower your risk for diseases or conditions that may lead to or complicate cardiomyopathy through avoiding alcohol and illegal drugs, getting enough sleep, heart-healthy eating, physical activity, quitting smoking, and managing stress.