Right-sided heart failure

Injury	Disease	Nutrition	Poison

Symptoms	Surgery	Test	Special Topic

Heart, section through the middle

Right-sided heart failure

Definition:

Right-sided heart failure is when the right side of the heart loses its ability to pump blood efficiently. It is often a complication of other conditions.

Alternative Names:

Congestive heart failure - right-sided

Causes, incidence, and risk factors:

Right-sided heart failure occurs in about 1 out of 20 people. Coronary artery disease is the most common cause of heart failure in the United States.

Heart failure may affect the right side of the heart (right ventricle), the left side (left ventricle), or both sides of the heart. In right-sided heart failure, the right ventricle loses its pumping function and blood may back up into other areas of the body, producing congestion. Congestion affects the liver, the gastrointestinal tract, and the limbs. In addition, the right ventricle may be unable to pump blood efficiently to the lungs and to the left ventricle.

Causes of right-sided heart failure include left-sided heart failure and lung diseases such as chronic bronchitis and emphysema. Other causes include congenital heart disease, clots in pulmonary arteries, pulmonary hypertension, and heart valve disease.

Review Date: 12/14/2004
Reviewed By: Fabian Arnaldo, M.D., Department of Cardiology, Henry Ford Hospital, Detroit, MI. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.

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