Symptoms of rheumatoid heart disease

Rheumatoid heart disease is also a very common type of heart disease. It is caused by rheumatic fever activity. Generally, the symptoms of such a disease are not obvious in the early stages. In the later stages, symptoms such as fatigue, palpitations, shortness of breath, cough, and lower limb edema will appear. It is most common in winter and spring. Generally, such a disease is likely to occur at a very young age. Let's take a look at the symptoms of rheumatoid heart disease.

The harm of rheumatoid heart disease is also very serious. Patients will experience difficulty breathing and obvious symptoms of angina pectoris. Everyone should understand the symptoms of rheumatoid heart disease. Only by understanding some of its symptoms can we get treatment as soon as possible.

Clinical manifestations

1. Mitral regurgitation

Patients with rheumatic mitral regurgitation often have only mild symptoms. Symptoms worsen when there is rheumatic activity, infective endocarditis or chordae tendineae rupture. 75% of patients with mitral regurgitation develop atrial fibrillation, which can increase the pressure on the left atrium. Excessive left ventricular volume is another important cause of mitral regurgitation and palpitations and shortness of breath in patients. In the later stages of the disease, there may be pulmonary edema, hemoptysis, and right heart failure.

2. Aortic stenosis

Patients with aortic valve stenosis may be asymptomatic during the compensatory period, while patients with severe stenosis of the valve orifice often experience fatigue, dyspnea (exertional or paroxysmal), angina pectoris, dizziness or syncope, and even sudden death.

(1) Angina pectoris: Angina pectoris occurs in 20% to 60% of patients, and the pain increases with age and the severity of the valve orifice. The presence of angina pectoris indicates that aortic valve stenosis is already quite serious. Angina pectoris can occur after exertion or at rest, indicating that it is not necessarily related to exertion and physical activity.

(2) Dizziness or syncope

About 30% of patients experience dizziness or syncope, which can last from as short as 1 minute to more than half an hour. Some patients also have Adams-Stokes syndrome or arrhythmia. Dizziness or syncope often occurs after labor or when the body is bent forward, and sometimes is induced at rest by sudden changes in body position or sublingual nitroglycerin for the treatment of angina pectoris.

(3) Dyspnea

Exertional dyspnea is often a manifestation of heart failure, often accompanied by fatigue and paroxysmal increases in venous pressure. As heart failure worsens, paroxysmal nocturnal dyspnea, orthopnea, and coughing up pink frothy sputum may occur.

(4) Sudden death

Sudden death may occur in 20% to 50% of cases. In most cases, sudden death may be preceded by repeated angina pectoris or syncope, but it may also be the first symptom. Its occurrence may be related to serious and fatal arrhythmias, such as ventricular fibrillation.

(5) Excessive sweating and palpitations

This type of patients sweat a lot. Due to increased myocardial contraction and arrhythmia, patients often feel palpitations. Excessive sweating often occurs after palpitations, which may be related to autonomic nervous system dysfunction and increased sympathetic nerve tension.

3. Tricuspid stenosis

The clinical manifestations of tricuspid stenosis may be less obvious or confused with the symptoms of mitral stenosis due to the co-existence of mitral stenosis. Patients are more prone to fatigue and often complain of discomfort or pain in the right upper abdomen and general edema. The palpable pulsation of the jugular vein often gives the patient a fluttering discomfort in the neck. In addition, due to gastrointestinal congestion, patients often complain of loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting or belching. A small number of patients may also experience syncope, periodic cyanosis or discomfort behind the sternum, and may have difficulty breathing.

4. Tricuspid regurgitation

Symptoms of tricuspid regurgitation without pulmonary hypertension are relatively mild. When pulmonary hypertension and tricuspid regurgitation coexist, cardiac output decreases and symptoms of right heart failure are obvious. It may manifest as fatigue, generalized edema, abdominal effusion, and distension and pain in the right hypochondrium and right upper abdomen caused by hepatic congestion. There is a pulsating sensation in the veins of the neck or abdomen, which is more obvious during physical labor or emotional excitement. Sometimes there may be eye pulsation, and some patients may have mild jaundice. In many patients with tricuspid regurgitation, as the disease progresses, pulmonary congestion caused by coexistent mitral valve disease may decrease, but weakness, fatigue, and other symptoms of decreased cardiac output become apparent.

Everyone should understand the symptoms of rheumatoid heart disease. Only by knowing its symptoms can we carry out some early treatment. The impact of rheumatoid heart disease is also very large. It can cause breathing difficulties. If it is not discovered and treated early, it will lead to sudden death. It is a disease that deserves everyone's attention.