Which lung sounds are typically heard with left-sided heart failure?

• A. Crackles
• B. Stridor
• C. Wheezes
• D. Rhonchi

Answer: (A)

Left-sided heart failure raises pressure in the pulmonary veins, causing fluid to leak into the lung tissue and alveoli (pulmonary edema). This fluid disrupts normal air movement and creates crackling, popping sounds as air moves through fluid and reopens small airways during breathing. Crackles are most noticeable at the lung bases and are a classic auscultatory sign of congestive heart failure.

Stridor signals upper airway obstruction, not pulmonary edema. Wheezes arise from narrowed airways due to bronchospasm or edema elsewhere, and rhonchi come from secretions in larger airways. While these can appear in various conditions, they’re not the typical finding for left-sided heart failure.