classification

Last reviewed 01/2018

The New York Heart Association classify four grades of severity with respect to dyspnoea on exertion:

  • normal

  • moderate:
    • walking on the level causes dyspnoea

  • severe:
    • unable to continue walking even slowly on the level
    • all but the lightest housework is impossible

  • gross:
    • the slightest effort induces severe breathlessness
    • the patient is practically confined to bed