Online Heart Failure Treatment
Heart failure treatment does not stop between cardiology appointments. When you’re running low on medication, dealing with side effects, or unsure whether a dose is right, our board-certified doctors are available 24/7 to review your treatment and medical history. When a refill is appropriate, your prescription can be sent to the pharmacy you choose the same day.
Get follow-up support from home for medication refills, dose questions, and side effects. New, severe, or rapidly worsening symptoms need in-person medical care.
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Hi Dr. Nicole, I experienced heart failure. Can you help me refill my medications?
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How do online visits help you manage heart failure?
Heart failure is managed over time, so you may need support between cardiology appointments. An online visit can help with the parts of your care that do not require a physical exam, such as:
- Getting medication refills so you do not run out of your medicines while waiting for your next appointment.
- Reviewing changes in your symptoms, such as sudden weight gain, new swelling, or increased shortness of breath.
- Helping you understand your daily weight, blood pressure, and pulse readings, and when they may need attention.
- Checking for side effects such as dizziness, cough, or swelling that may affect how you take your medication.
- Getting a lab requisition online when you need blood tests to check kidney function or potassium levels.
- Knowing when you need to see a doctor in person or go to the ER because your symptoms need urgent care.
During the visit, the doctor can review your current medications, recent symptoms and home readings, and any recent test results. When medically appropriate, they may provide a refill or arrange blood work. They can also tell you when an in-person assessment is needed.
What heart failure medications can we prescribe or refill online?
Our doctors can refill and manage these heart failure medications online, once a cardiologist or primary care doctor has started you on a regimen and recent labs are on file.
loop diuretic
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beta blocker
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beta blocker
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ACE inhibitor
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ACE inhibitor
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ACE inhibitor
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ACE inhibitor
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ARB
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ARNI
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aldosterone antagonist
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cardiac glycoside
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What is heart failure?
Heart failure does not mean your heart has stopped. It means your heart is not pumping enough blood to meet your body’s needs. It can develop because of conditions such as high blood pressure, coronary artery disease, a previous heart attack, heart valve problems, or abnormal heart rhythms.
Heart failure is a long-term condition that needs ongoing treatment and follow-up. It affects more than 64 million people worldwide. Managing it usually involves taking prescribed medicines, keeping track of your symptoms and blood pressure, and having regular checkups. When a refill is appropriate, you can get a prescription online and have it sent to your pharmacy the same day.
What are the warning signs of worsening heart failure?
Most heart failure care happens at home. These are the changes that mean you should call your provider, ideally the same day, before they turn into a hospital stay.
- Weight up by more than 2 to 3 pounds in a day, or 5 pounds in a week.
- New or worse swelling in your feet, ankles, legs or abdomen.
- Shortness of breath during activity, at rest, or when you lie flat.
- Waking short of breath an hour or two after falling asleep.
- Needing more pillows than usual to sleep.
- A cough that will not settle, or new wheezing.
- More tiredness or weakness than usual, or losing your appetite.
- A pulse that is irregular, very fast or very slow.
The home routine behind that list is simple. Weigh yourself every morning on the same scale, after the bathroom and before you eat, and write it down.
When is heart failure a medical emergency?
Some heart failure symptoms are not a phone call. Call 911 or go to an emergency room, and do not wait for an online visit, if any of these happen.
- Trouble breathing, or breathlessness that comes on suddenly and does not ease when you sit up.
- Coughing up pink, foamy sputum, or blood.
- A feeling of drowning or suffocating, or not being able to finish a sentence.
- Fainting, or a fast or irregular heartbeat, alongside any other symptom.
- Chest pain that is crushing, squeezing, tightening, or feels like pressure.
- Chest pain that spreads to your jaw, your left arm, or between your shoulder blades.
- Chest pain with nausea, dizziness, sweating, a racing heart, or shortness of breath.
FAQs about heart failure
How is heart failure treated?
Heart failure is treated with a combination of medicines that ease symptoms and lower the risk of hospital admission and death: diuretics, beta blockers, an ACE inhibitor or ARB or an ARNI, a mineralocorticoid receptor antagonist and an SGLT2 inhibitor. Sodium limits, a daily weight check and agreed activity sit alongside them. Some people also need valve repair, bypass surgery, angioplasty, a pacemaker or a defibrillator.
Can you cure heart failure permanently?
There is no cure for heart failure, but it is very treatable. With the right medicines and daily care most people live longer with fewer symptoms and fewer hospital stays, and in some people the heart pumps measurably better than it did at diagnosis. Treatment continues even when you feel well, because stopping it is usually what brings the symptoms back.
Can congestive heart failure be reversed after treatment?
Sometimes, and it depends on the cause. When heart failure follows something that can itself be treated, such as an abnormal heart rhythm, a thyroid disorder, severe anemia or an infection that weakened the heart muscle, treating that cause can improve how well the heart pumps. For most people, though, heart failure is a long-term condition that is controlled rather than reversed, and the medicines are continued even once symptoms settle.
How long can you live with heart failure without treatment?
There is no single number, and anyone who gives you one is guessing. Survival depends on the cause, the ejection fraction, how far the condition has progressed and what else you are living with. What is clear is that untreated or interrupted therapy is the wrong direction. Heart failure is still the leading reason older adults are admitted to hospital, and it accounts for 8.5 percent of cardiovascular deaths in the United States. If you have run out of a heart failure medicine, or stopped one because of a side effect, that is worth sorting out this week rather than next month.
What is the treatment for shortness of breath due to heart failure?
Breathlessness in heart failure usually means fluid is backing up, so the first treatment is a diuretic such as furosemide, with beta blockers, an ACE inhibitor or ARB or an ARNI, and an SGLT2 inhibitor working underneath to make it happen less often. Sodium and fluid limits matter too. Breathlessness that comes on suddenly, that is there at rest, or that wakes you up gasping is a different situation and needs urgent care, not a dose adjustment.
Can I continue taking my other medications while on heart failure treatment?
Usually yes, but the list matters. Tell the doctor every prescription, over-the-counter product and supplement you take, because several of them interact with heart failure medicines or make fluid retention worse. MedlinePlus specifically tells people with heart failure to avoid ibuprofen and naproxen. If you take spironolactone, potassium supplements and potassium-containing salt substitutes need checking before you use them.
How often should I follow up with my healthcare provider for heart failure management?
It depends on how stable you are. People whose symptoms and doses have settled are usually reviewed every three to six months, while anyone recently out of hospital or in the middle of a dose change is seen far more often. Two tests get confused here: an echocardiogram is an ultrasound that measures your ejection fraction, and an electrocardiogram (ECG) records the heart rhythm. Your provider decides when each is repeated, alongside blood tests for potassium and kidney function.
How does lifestyle modification, such as diet and exercise, impact heart failure treatment?
They make a real difference alongside your medicines. The levers that count are sodium, usually held between 1500 and 2300 mg a day, whatever fluid limit your provider sets, a daily weight check, regular activity at a level you have agreed with your doctor, stopping smoking, limiting alcohol, and keeping other conditions such as high blood pressure, diabetes and anemia under control.
How can I monitor my symptoms at home and know when to seek immediate medical attention for heart failure treatment?
Weigh yourself every morning on the same scale, after the bathroom and before you eat, and keep a record alongside your blood pressure and pulse. Call your provider if your weight rises more than 2 to 3 pounds in a day or 5 pounds in a week, if swelling or breathlessness is getting worse, or if a new symptom appears. Call 911 for trouble breathing, severe chest pain, fainting, or coughing up pink froth.
How do you treat heart failure without medication?
Lifestyle changes support heart failure treatment, but they do not replace it. A low-sodium diet, a healthy weight, regular activity, no smoking, less alcohol and decent sleep all reduce symptoms and help keep fluid under control. The medicines are the part that lowers the risk of hospital admission and death, so dropping them and relying on lifestyle alone is not a safe swap. Devices and surgery help some people, but they are added to drug therapy rather than used instead of it.
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