As Our Parents Age So Do We

Since my dad was in the hospital due to complications of congestive heart failure, I’ve compiled these resources to help me learn a lot more about the condition.

Image from http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov

Five Tips to Keep in Mind When You Search for Medical Information on the Web (Subtitle: Be Sure You Are Reading Accurate Information.)

1. Use sites affiliated with research institutions, professional groups, and hospitals, and confirm that a site’s information has been checked out with experts in the field before it’s published.
2. Stay away from sites where people moan and groan about medical problems. The complaints often eclipse the quality of the medical information.
3. If you are unsure about a site, check with a librarian at your local public library or your hospital’s library.
4. Use the web information to learn and to help you formulate questions. Write these questions down if you plan to bring the information to your physician.
5. No web information is a substitute for calling or meeting with you physician.

Suggested Websites

• Medline Plus CHF Page – National Library of Medicine (National Institutes of Health, no advertising)
• Medline Plus X-Plain Patient Education Video on CHF
• National Institutes of Health Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute – great video, Heart Contraction and Blood Flow, about halfway down the page
• American Heart Association – Congestive Heart Info
• MedicineNet.com Frequently Asked Questions about CHF
• Mayo Clinic Heart Failure Page – starts here and continues with links on the left of the page
• Mayo Clinic Heart and Circulatory Video
• Web-MD CHF Page
• Congestive Heart Failure: How to Stay Well and Out of the Hospital (American Academy of Family Physicians)

A Few Recent Articles on Congestive Heart Failure (not medical sites)

• Heart Failure Guide – New York Times
• Elizabeth Taylor Dies of Congestive Heart Failure – LA Times
• What is Congestive Heart Failure? – Boston.com (Boston Globe)
• A post I wrote for AsOurParentsAge in March 2011 – Aging Parents: Explaining Congestive Heart Failure