Lesson 1Past cardiac history, prior heart failure, coronary disease, revascularisation, arrhythmias, and hospitalisationsThis part covers how to gather detailed past heart history, covering previous heart failure, coronary issues, revascularisation procedures, irregular heartbeats, and hospital stays to sharpen diagnosis, outlook, and treatment plans.
Documented heart failure diagnosisCoronary disease and prior MI detailsPCI, CABG, and other revascularizationHistory of atrial or ventricular arrhythmiasPrior cardiac and HF hospitalizationsBaseline LVEF and prior imagingLesson 2Associated symptoms: chest pain, palpitations, syncope, presyncope, fever, cough productive vs dryThis part explains how to thoroughly check for chest pain, heart flutters, fainting spells, near-fainting, fever, and cough types, to separate heart problems from others and spot urgent warning signs needing quick action.
Character and timing of chest painPalpitations pattern and triggersSyncope and presyncope red flagsFever, chills, and infection cluesCough type, sputum, and hemoptysisPleuritic versus pressure-like painLesson 3Onset, duration, and progression of breathlessness and recent precipitating eventsHere we organise questions on when breathlessness started, how long it lasted, how it worsened, plus recent triggers, to tell apart sudden, building, or long-term patterns and pinpoint causes like infections, poor blood flow, or skipped meds.
Exact onset and time course of dyspneaStable, improving, or worsening patternTriggers: exertion, rest, or recumbencyRecent infections, fevers, or travelDietary or medication nonadherenceRecent surgery, trauma, or pregnancyLesson 4Exercise tolerance, daily activity changes, and weight gain patternWe look at assessing ability to exercise, shifts in daily tasks, and weight gain trends, using everyday history and recent patterns to check for fluid buildup, treatment response, and need to tweak water tablets or other remedies.
Baseline versus current activity levelDyspnea with stairs or short walksRecent reduction in daily activitiesDaily weight monitoring practicesRapid weight gain and fluid retentionImpact on work and caregiving rolesLesson 5Social and functional status, support at home, ability to attend follow-up, and access to transport/emergency servicesThis part helps evaluate social life, daily functioning, home help, clinic visit ability, and transport or emergency access, to plan safe discharge, self-care, and extra community support where needed.
Living situation and caregiver supportAbility to perform basic daily tasksHealth literacy and self-management skillsReliability of transport to follow-upAccess to pharmacy and emergency careFinancial or insurance constraintsLesson 6Fluid intake, salt intake, alcohol use, and recent medication changes or missed dosesHere we check fluid and salt consumption, alcohol habits, and recent med changes or forgotten doses, to identify common triggers of sudden heart failure worsening and provide focused patient advice and guidance.
Daily fluid volume and restrictionsDietary sodium sources and habitsAlcohol quantity, pattern, and bingesRecent new or stopped medicationsMissed doses of heart failure drugsPatient understanding of regimenLesson 7Medication adherence, over-the-counter drugs, complementary medicines, and recent NSAID or steroid useThis part tackles sticking to meds, shop-bought drugs, herbal remedies, and recent painkiller or steroid use, pointing out those that increase fluid hold, blood pressure, or kidney strain in heart patients.
Barriers to taking prescribed medicinesUse of OTC cold and pain remediesRecent NSAID or COX-2 inhibitor useSystemic or inhaled steroid exposureHerbal and complementary productsPharmacy reconciliation and recordsLesson 8Comorbidities and risk factors: hypertension control, diabetes control, chronic lung disease, renal disease, and sleep apnoeaThis part deals with drawing out other illnesses and risks like high blood pressure, sugar control, long-term lung issues, kidney problems, and sleep apnoea, focusing on management status and effects on breathlessness and heart failure gravity.
Hypertension history and control levelDiabetes duration and complicationsCOPD, asthma, and lung function historyChronic kidney disease stage and trendsScreening for sleep apnea symptomsObesity, smoking, and lipid profileLesson 9Orthopnoea, paroxysmal nocturnal dyspnoea, and nocturnal cough detailsWe probe specific questions on breathlessness lying flat, sudden night breathlessness, and night coughs, including start, frequency, and position triggers, to separate heart failure from lung or airway night issues.
Number of pillows and sleep positionTiming and frequency of PND episodesNocturnal cough pattern and triggersRelief with sitting or standing upOverlap with reflux or asthma symptomsImpact on sleep quality and fatigueLesson 10Symptoms suggesting alternative diagnoses: unilateral leg pain/swelling, haemoptysis, fever, pleuritic chest pain, or neurologic signsWe target symptoms hinting at other causes like lung clots, chest infections, collapsed lung, or brain events, teaching key questions to distinguish these from main heart failure signs.
Unilateral leg pain or swelling historyPleuritic chest pain and PE suspicionFocal neurologic deficits or confusionHigh fever, rigors, and pneumonia cluesSudden onset dyspnea and pneumothoraxRed flags requiring urgent escalation
