The REAL Guide to Heart Disease
A heart attack is the most common cause of death in the United States. Every minute of the day someone dies from a heart attack It remains the #1 cause of death in the United States, killing about half a million people each year. Coronary heart disease used to be thought of as a disease of the middle aged and the elderly. Over the last twenty years it has become increasingly clear that atherosclerosis – damage to the heart arteries -- begins in childhood. Now is the best time to make changesWhat is Heart Disease
There are many types of heart disease. About 25% of all Americans have one or more types of cardiovascular disease.The major types of heart disease are atherosclerosis, coronary, rheumatic, congenital, myocarditis, angina and arrhythmia.
Heart disease can arise from congenital defects, infection, narrowing of the coronary arteries, high blood pressure, or disturbances.
The first stages of heart disease are lesions and cracks forming in the blood vessel walls normally at the points of highest pressure or stress (near the heart). The second stage is the body trying to repair itself by depositing fatty substances (cholesterol, lipoproteins) inside the blood vessels to fill the cracks.
Over time, without the proper body nutrient, vitamin C, to help keep the blood vessel walls from cracking and requiring constant repair, these fatty substances can begin to build up and clog the blood vessels causing stroke and heart attack
A heart attack is also called a myocardial infarction or an MI. Myocardial refers to the myocardium, the heart muscle. Infarction is tissue death due to a local lack of oxygen
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Myocardial Infarction - Heart Failure
A heart attack (also known as a myocardial infarction) is the death of heart muscle from the sudden blockage of a coronary artery by a blood clot. Coronary arteries are blood vessels that supply the heart muscle with blood and oxygen.Blockage of a coronary artery deprives the heart muscle of blood and oxygen,causing injury to the heart muscle. Injury to the heart muscle causes chest painand pressure.
If blood flow is not restored within 20 to 40 minutes,irreversible death of the heart muscle will begin to occur. Muscle then continues to die for 6-8 hours at which time the heart attack usually is "complete." The dead heart muscle is replaced by scar tissue.
What Causes a Heart Attack?
The most common cause of heart attack is the sudden blockage of one of the heart's arteries by a blood clot. These clots typically form in arteries that are already affected by atherosclerosis - that is, the arteries are narrowed by fatty deposits of plaque and other materials.Click Here to read the Seven Steps to a Healthy Heart
How Does Atherosclerosis Cause a Heart Attack?
Atherosclerosis can cause a heart attack in one of three ways.• The fatty plaque can cut off blood supply by completely blocking a coronary artery.
• The plaque can tear or rupture, causing a blood clot to form. The blood clot may become large enough to close off the artery. This type of heart attack is called a coronary thrombosis or coronary occlusion.
• Narrowed arteries may not be able to supply enough oxygen-rich blood. This could cause the heart to beat with an abnormal rhythm called an arrhythmia.
What Else Might Cause a Heart Attack?
Sometimes heart attacks occur when an artery goes into a temporary spasm, cutting off blood supply to the heart. If the spasm is severe enough, it can cause a heart attack. The cause of these spasms isn't understood. They can occur both in blood vessels that appear normal and in vessels that are partially blocked by plaque.
In rare cases, heart attacks may be the result of other conditions. These could include the following:
• an abnormal tendency of the blood to clot called hypercoagulability
• collagen vascular disease such as rheumatoid arthritis or systemic lupus erythematosus
• cocaine use
• a small traveling blood clot called an embolus that gets stuck in a coronary artery
Heart Disease Prevention and Cure
Some forms of heart disease can be prevented.To prevent coronary heart disease, one must exercise consistently, have a low salt and low fat diet, restrain from smoking and lose a couple of pounds if overweight.
Healthy diets also help prevent heart disease
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Treating a Heart Attack - CPR and others
Early heart attack deaths can be avoided if a bystander starts CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation) within five minutes of the onset of ventricular fibrillation. CPR involves breathing for the victim and applying external chest compression to make the heart pump.When paramedics arrive, medications and/or electrical shock (cardioversion) to the heart can be administered to convert ventricular fibrillation to a normal heart rhythm. Therefore, prompt CPR and rapid paramedic response can improve the survival chances from a heart attack.
The treatment of a heart attack may include the prompt administration of drugs to dissolve and prevent blood clots; an angioplasty or intracoronary stenting to open an obstructed artery; and medications that open (dilate) blood vessels.
Early reopening of a blocked coronary artery reduces the amount of heart muscle damage, lessens the size of the heart attack, and improves prognosis. Patients suffering a heart attack are usually hospitalized for several days to detect heart rhythm disturbance, and observe for shortness of breath and chest pain.
Y! Health Heart & Vascular Health News
- Prevention clinics help control heart fatal (Reuters)
Reuters - In 1999, UK researchers reported that patients with coronary heart disease who attended nurse-led prevention clinics had reductions in death and heart disease events at one year. In 2003, the same team reported that patients who switched to the clinics later on had "caught up," to the point where there were no longer differences between the two groups. - Doctors match machines in spotting heart disease: study (AFP)
AFP - A routine examination by a doctor works almost as well as an electrocardiogram -- better known as an ECG or EKG -- in predicting heart disease, according to a study published Friday. - Heart Failure Accounts for 37% of Medicare Spending (HealthDay)
HealthDay - WEDNESDAY, Nov. 12 (HealthDay News) -- Medicare beneficiaries with heart failure have many more doctor visits and take more medications than those without heart failure, researchers are reporting. - Illness beliefs shape prevention program adherence (Reuters)
Reuters - Individual beliefs about heart disease, including its symptoms, controllability, likely duration, and consequences influence adherence to secondary prevention regimens designed to reduce risk, researchers report. - Fat hormone may help predict heart failure: study (Reuters)
Reuters - High levels of a hormone made in fat cells may be a strong indicator of the onset of heart failure, U.S. researchers said on Wednesday. - Beta Blocker Use Questioned in Non-Heart Surgery (HealthDay)
HealthDay - MONDAY, Nov. 10 (HealthDay News) -- An analysis of 33 studies on drugs known as beta blockers has concluded that they are not useful in any surgical procedure other than heart surgery. In fact, using beta blockers for non-coronary surgery may actually increase the risk of stroke, the scientists say. - Long-Term Help Regimen Cut Heart Attack Recurrence (HealthDay)
HealthDay - TUESDAY, Nov. 11 (HealthDay News) -- Heart attack survivors can significantly reduce their risk of non-fatal coronary recurrence by participating in an intensive, long-term prevention program, according to an Italian study that included 3,240 patients. - Study Questions Screening Heart Attack Patients for
Depression (HealthDay)
HealthDay - TUESDAY, Nov. 11 (HealthDay News) -- There's not enough evidence to support a recent American Heart Association (AHA) call to automatically screen heart patients for depression, according to international experts who contend the "premature" recommendation would consume a vast amount of resources without any proof it would improve patient care. - After Decades, Decreases in Heart Risk Factors Level Off (HealthDay)
HealthDay - TUESDAY, Nov. 11 (HealthDay News) -- Three decades of a pronounced reduction in risk factors for heart disease is slowing considerably. - New test superior for detecting heart failure in ER (Reuters)
Reuters - A new blood test to identify heart failure patients in most dire need of treatment when they turn up at an emergency room complaining of shortness of breath proved better than current tests, according to results of a study unveiled on Tuesday.
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