Can somebody explain to me what an ACE inhibitors, Beta blockers and diuretics is?

Question

ok, my grandma was diagnosed with congested heart failure...her heart is getting weaker and weaker and she's pretty much dying...can someone tell me what my family should die besides just let her die, and what to do if we want her to have a heart transplant?

This was a previous question that i asked and one of the answers was that she can be treated with an ACE inhibitors beta blockers, and diuretics. So can someone explain what that is to me?

Answer 1

A diuretic is a medication that makes one urinate, ALOT. i take 2 of these, used to be 3.   my guess is that she is retaining water and fluids because her body is not functioning. i also take an ACE inhibitor, diamox, but i use mine as a diuretic. i have a kidney disease btw.  

ace inhibitors prevent hypertension, increase cadiac output, much more.

beta blockers are used as cardiac protectors.

look up beta blockers and ACE inhibitors.  they are very long to explain.  

good luck and be well

Answer 2

Congestive heart failure is a symptom, not a diagnosis.  In other words, it is an effect, not a cause.  Basically, the heart is unable to produce the force to push blood from the veins through to the arteries.  This causes pressure to build up in the veins and forces water out of them into the tissues, usually the lungs and the skin, but when it is severe, it can include the abdomen and other tissues as well.

ACE inhibitors prevent an enzyme from activating angiotensin, a hormone that affects the size of the veins to lower this pressure, save the heart some of the amount of fluid it needs to pump with each beat, and also seems to help prevent long-term changes in the heart muscle itself.

Beta-blockers prevent the effects of epinephrine (adrenaline), which lowers blood pressure by slowing down the heart and making it beat slightly weaker, lowering the work that the heart has to do.  If a patient is really sick and having worse symptoms of heart failure than normal, beta blockers should be delayed or reduced until they can be stabilized, then started to help improve symptoms and long-term complications.

Diuretics basically make you pee more, taking away some of the water volume in the veins, allowing the water in the tissues to slowly come back to where it can be removed by the kidneys and also lowering the amount of fluid the heart has to pump with each beat, again lowering the power it needs to generate.

The combination of all three ofthese drugs lowers the work load of the heart and slows worsening of whatever is causing heart failure in most cases.  They have proven benefit in delaying death and reducing symptoms of heart failure caused by coronary heart disease, but not as much evidence when it is caused by something else, although they probably still help.

A heart transplant can help someone who is younger and has an otherwise healthy body and can also help older patients, but generally is not considered if a person has other serious illnesses.  Medications can make someone's life longer and much easier if started early, taken as directed, and managed properly by a trained medical team.

Answer 3

A brief description of these meds

Beta blockers are a class of drugs that work by binding to beta receptors on cardiac and sometimes smooth muscle.  Basically, they reduce the force of the contraction of the heart muscle.  This can prove to be useful in patients with high blood pressure or tachycardia.

ACE inhibitors block the action of an enzyme called Angiotensin converting enzyme.  This causes dilation of blood vessels and reduced blood pressure.

Diuretics, as one of the users stated, makes you urinate.   The decreased fluid volume also leads to lower blood pressure.