Heart Failure (CHF) Program

Living with congestive heart failure (CHF), a chronic condition, means you or someone you know may experience shortness of breath, muscle weakness and fatigue or other discomfort. For any stage of CHF, you can learn how to stay as healthy and active as possible through the innovative and compassionate care you’ll find in the Heart Failure Program at OU Health in Oklahoma City and Edmond.

Multidisciplinary Care for Congestive Heart Failure

When you choose OU Health for your CHF care, you and your loved ones gain access to Oklahoma’s only academic health system and a multidisciplinary team, including board-certified cardiologists and other medical specialists, who involve you in identifying and delivering an early and accurate diagnosis for specific, advanced and rare forms of heart failure. Then, you and your OU Health team work together to create a personalized care plan, including standard CHF services, tailored to your particular condition.

Depending on your individual situation, you also may benefit from our research- and evidence-based care for rare cardiac conditions, as well as our collaboration with a wide range of specialized healthcare partners for advanced treatments such as ventricular assist devices, cardiac transplant, or multi-organ transplant services and more.

Congestive Heart Failure Symptoms

Because congestive heart failure often occurs when the heart cannot pump or fill well, you may experience symptoms of CHF such as:

• Shortness of breath during activities or rest
• Wheezing
• Weakness and fatigue
• Chest pain, especially during exertion
• Sudden weight gain
• Swollen legs, ankles and feet
• Rapid or irregular heartbeat

Conditions related to congestive heart failure include coronary heart disease, heart valve disease, diabetes, and high blood pressure. Your family history and/or lifestyle factors such as cigarette smoking also may contribute to a diagnosis of congestive heart failure.

Get Expert Care for Rare CHF Cardiac Conditions

Rely on the expertise and resources you’ll find in the Heart Failure Program at OU Health for early detection and comprehensive care of rare heart conditions, including:

• Amyloid cardiomyopathy – Appears as abnormally folded proteins that build up in the heart and affect its ability to function properly
• Chemotherapy-associated heart failure (dilated cardiomyopathy) – Releases harmful free radicals, typically from cancer chemotherapy, into the body; causes arrhythmia or heart failure
• Genetic/familial cardiomyopathy (restrictive cardiomyopathy) – Involves mutation of certain cells inherited from an affected parent
• Myocarditis – Occurs when middle layer of heart becomes inflamed; affects heart’s ability to adequately pump blood

Heart Attack Symptoms - Get to know the American Heart Association’s warning signs of heart attack. For immediate help, call 911.

Heart Failure Treatments & Services

As part of your individual CHF treatment plan, you and your heart care team may want to take advantage of routine and specialized procedures such as cardiac biopsy and/or high-resolution cardiac imaging options at OU Health, including:

• Complex cardiac MRI – Uses a magnetic field and radiofrequency waves to create detailed pictures of heart and arteries; noninvasive test
• Nuclear scans – Involves radioactive substances for visualizing structures and functions of various organs such as heart, brain, bones, lungs, thyroid, kidneys, blood system, stomach, bowel and more
• Pyrophosphate (PYP) scan – Helps diagnose a rare condition called cardiac amyloidosis

Your treatment plan also may include a variety of cardiopulmonary exercise tests with our electrophysiology (EP) professionals and/or a referral for genetic testing at our onsite laboratory. Check our online eHealth Library to learn more about heart failure and download the OU Health Heart Failure Patient Guide.

Help Keep Your Heart Healthy

Learn how to exercise for heart health and find out more about eating heart-healthy foods.

Related OU Health Services

Explore more OU Health services for cardiovascular care, including:

• Adult congenital heart program
• Cardiac imaging
• Electrophysiology (EP)
• Interventional and structural cardiology
• Vascular medicine
• Vascular surgery

Clinical Trials for Heart Failure

Ask your OU Health heart care team if you may qualify to participate in a variety of ongoing clinical trials or research projects related to heart failure. You may qualify for research studies sponsored by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), industry-sponsored research studies or OU Health investigator-initiated local research projects about heart failure.

Your Expert Heart Failure Care Team

From board-certified heart physicians, cardiologists, cardiac imaging specialists, electrophysiologists, genetic specialists, oncologists and specialized cardiac nurses to primary care and family medicine physicians, surgeons, psychologists, psychiatrists, radiologists, dieticians, pharmacists, social workers and case managers, each member of your highly trained multidisciplinary heart failure team contributes to your positive experience in the OU Health Heart Failure (CHF) Program. You can count on receiving comprehensive care supported by world-leading research and pioneering technology for any stage of heart failure.