Congestive heart failure and coronary artery disease

Coronary artery disease can cause damage to your heart muscle, which, in turn, may cause heart failure. So think of angina or a prior "coronary event," such as a heart attack, as a timely warning that you need to stop your CAD from progressing and causing further damage.

Health Tips from Dr. Healy: Video: What men need to know about their cholesterol Choose another disease or condition... Allergic Rhinitis Allergies, Food Allergy & Asthma Center Alzheimer's Disease Anxiety Aortic Aneurysms Arrhythmia Arthritis, Osteo- (OA) Arthritis, Rheumatoid (RA) Asthma Atopic Dermatitis Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) Back Pain Brain Tumor Bones, Joints & Muscles Center Breast Cancer Brain & Behavior Center Brain Tumor Cancer Center    Brain Tumor    Breast Cancer    Cancer Prevention    Clinical Trials    Colorectal Cancer    Endometrial Cancer    Living With and Beyond Cancer    Lung Cancer    Prostate Cancer    Skin Cancer Cardiomyopathy Cataracts Cholesterol Control Clinical Trials Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) Colorectal Cancer Congenital Heart Disease Congestive Heart Failure (CHF) Coronary Artery Disease (CAD) Crohn's Disease Depression Diabetes Center Diabetes, Type 1 Diabetes, Type 2 Digestive Disorders Center Eczema Endometrial Cancer Erectile Dysfunction (ED) Eye & Vision Center Fibromyalgia Food Allergies Gallstone Disease Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD) GERD Glaucoma Hay Fever Headache Heart Center Hepatitis A Hepatitis B Hepatitis C High Blood Pressure Hypertension Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy (HCM) Impotence Insomnia Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) Living With and Beyond Cancer Losing Weight Lung Cancer Macular Degeneration Memory Loss Osteoarthritis (OA) Osteoporosis Parkinson's Disease Peptic Ulcer Prediabetes Prostate Cancer Respiratory Disorders Center Restless Legs Syndrome (RLS) Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) Sexual & Reproductive Health Center Sinusitis Skin Cancer Sleep Apnea Sleep Center Stroke Type 1 Diabetes Type 2 Diabetes Ulcerative Colitis (UC) Weight Control What is your heart risk? Use our calculator to find out. Online resources for congestive heart failure information Congestive Heart Failure-Related Clinical Trials Information Email this page Print this section

For starters, remake your lifestyle. High blood pressure, high blood levels of lipids (LDL, total cholesterol, and triglycerides), diabetes, smoking, and obesity are risk factors for coronary artery disease. The prescription:

• If you smoke, stop or at least cut down.
• Exercise on most days.
• Get your cholesterol checked regularly, and treat high blood levels.
• Lose weight if you are overweight.
• Eat a diet low in fat, particularly trans fats.
• Control high blood pressure and diabetes.
• Take the medications your doctor prescribes to improve the function of your heart and stop further damage.
• Consider coronary artery bypass surgery or an interventional procedure to treat narrowed blood vessels.
• See your doctor for regular follow-up visits. Consult a heart specialist (cardiologist) in addition to your primary-care physician for the purpose of adding preventive medications.