
Right-sided heart failure leads to blood buildup in your veins, which in turn may lead to fluid retention and swelling. According to data from the European Society of Cardiology registry, right-sided heart failure only accounts for 2.2 percent of heart failure hospital admissions. Right-sided heart failure most often develops from left-sided heart failure due to a backup of blood around your lungs that puts more stress on the right side of your heart. This buildup of blood can cause breathing symptoms, such as: Left-sided heart failure causes blood to build up in your pulmonary veins that carry blood from your lungs to your left atrium. Left-sided heart failure can cause right-sided heart failure.

It most often occurs due to coronary heart disease, heart attacks, or long-term high blood pressure. Left-sided heart failure is more common than right-sided heart failure and is caused by dysfunction of your left ventricle. How are left- and right-sided heart failure different? Left-sided heart failure The term heart failure is sometimes used interchangeably with congestive heart failure. In right-sided heart failure, your right ventricle loses pumping power and blood backs up in your veins. This means your left ventricle doesn’t relax properly due to stiffness and your heart doesn’t fill with enough blood between beats, or the pressure for the heart to function is very high. This is when your left ventricle isn’t able to contract normally and your heart can’t push an adequate amount of blood into circulation. There are two types of left-sided heart failure: The American Heart Association divides heart failure into one of three categories based on the part of your heart that’s affected: oxygenated blood flows from your left ventricle to your body’s arteries to be circulated throughout your body.oxygenated blood flows from your lungs to your left atrium and then your left ventricle.unoxygenated blood flows from your right ventricle to your lungs.unoxygenated blood flows from your body’s veins into your right atrium and then your right ventricle.To understand the different types of heart failure, it helps to know how your heart pumps blood: The most common cause of heart failure is coronary artery disease, which is a narrowing of the arteries that supply blood to your heart. Heart failure is usually a chronic and progressive condition, but it can develop quickly after a heart attack or other conditions that damage your heart.

About 6.2 million people in the United States are living with heart failure. It develops when your heart muscles are either too weak or not elastic enough to pump blood properly. Although the term heart failure suggests your heart isn’t able to function at all, it actually means your heart muscles just aren’t functioning well enough to support your body’s needs.
