Checking Your Weight with Heart Failure

With heart failure, the goal is to prevent fluid from building up in your body, because this is what causes symptoms like leg swelling and shortness of breath.

The good news is that it's easy to know when you're getting fluid buildup, because it will cause you to gain weight.

By tracking your weight regularly, you'll often be able to tell if your heart failure is worsening before there are more serious symptoms. That way, we can work together to keep you feeling your best.

Here are some suggestions to help track your weight:

• Use the same scale every day. Make sure that it's set on a flat, solid surface.
• Check your weight in the morning after going to the bathroom and before you eat or drink. This is your "dry weight."
• Wear the same thing each time you weigh yourself or always wear nothing. Do not wear shoes.
• Keep a calendar or notepad by the scale to write your weight on it each day. Have this calendar handy to review at visits.

Along with recording your weight, consider keeping a few notes on your calendar about how you feel each day.Pay attention to things that may indicate your heart failure is getting worse or fluid is building up:

• Is it harder to catch your breath?
• Are you more tired?
• Are your feet and ankles swollen (or more swollen than they usually are)?
• Do your thighs or abdomen (belly) seem puffy?

If you also notice any of the following, reach out to Galileo or another medical provider right away:

• Do you feel like it's harder to breathe when you lay flat to sleep?
• Do you wake up at night feeling out of breath?

The American Heart Association (AHA) recommends the HF Helper app, which can help you track your symptoms, medications, and more on your smartphone.

When checking your "dry weight" (as described in the "How to Track Your Weight" section), please reach out to Galileo or your cardiologist:

• If you weigh closer to 150 pounds, let us know if you gain more than 3 pounds (1.4 kg) in a day or 5 pounds (2.3 kg) in a week.
• If you weight closer to 300 pounds, let us know if you gain more than 5 to 6 pounds (2.3 to 2.7 kg) in a day or 8 to 10 pounds (3.6 to 4.5 kg) in week.

If this happens, we may adjust your water pill to help remove the fluid that is building up. Water pills include furosemide (Lasix), bumetanide (Bumex), etc.

It is appropriate for some people, but not everyone, to adjust their water pill on their own. If you're interested in guidance on how to do so, and if it is appropriate for you, please let us know.