Are you always feeling tired? Cardiologist explains how fatigue can be a symptom for many cardiovascular diseases

Fatigue can indicate heart issues, as explained by cardiologist Dr Danielle Belardo. Awareness of fatigue as a symptom is crucial for early detection.

Symptoms of cardiovascular diseases can present in many forms. According to the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), chest pain or discomfort, upper back or neck pain, heartburn, nausea or vomiting, shortness of breath, fluttering feelings in the chest (palpitations), and swelling of the feet, ankles, legs, abdomen, or neck veins are some symptoms to look out for.

Is feeling tired a sign of cardiovascular disease?

However, oftentimes, there are some subtle signs that point towards a cardiovascular disease, but they are often ignored: Fatigue. In an April 30 Instagram post shared by The Health Exchange Podcast, Dr Danielle Belardo, MD (cardiology), explained how fatigue can be one of the presenting symptoms for a variety of cardiovascular diseases.

The podcast captioned Dr Belardo's video, “'Fatigue can be one of the presenting symptoms for a variety of cardiovascular diseases.' @daniellebelardomd explains that people often ignore fatigue and don’t attribute it to potential health issues.”

What can fatigue mean?

In the video, the cardiologist stresses that across all ages, what she found really interesting is that people do not realise fatigue can be one of the presenting symptoms for a variety of cardiovascular diseases. According to her, this can include:

• coronary artery diseases
• heart failure
• cardiomyopathy
• arrhythmias

She points out that oftentimes, we have many other reasons for feeling fatigued and tired. For instance, “You're an athlete, a competitive athlete; you're in school, you're busy, and you have a multitude of other reasons to feel tired,” she said.

However, it is important to notice when something feels off because, oftentimes, ‘people can let fatigue be attributed to a variety of other things’. “When it really is a presenting symptom for many cardiovascular diseases,” the cardiologist warned.

According to a report by Harvard Health, fatigue can be caused by many illnesses and medicines. But a constant, new fatigue can sometimes signal heart failure (a condition in which the heart fails to pump well) or coronary artery disease. Though it is less common as an indication of coronary artery disease, sometimes it can be. Awareness is important.

Note to readers: This article is for informational purposes only and not a substitute for professional medical advice. Always seek the advice of your doctor with any questions about a medical condition.