Cardiovascular disease
Cardiovascular diseases are the leading cause of death worldwide.
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Cardiovascular diseases, types, treatments, prevention, risk factors and causes. Designed by Nazihpharmacy |
In this article:
- Types of cardiovascular disease
- Types vascular diseases
- Symptoms of cardiovascular disease
- Lifestyle tips for heart patients
- Causes and Risk factors
- Treating heart disease
- Prevention
- Sexual activity and heart disease
- Taking aspirin
- Summary
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), in the 2019 report(1), about 17.9 million people died from cardiovascular diseases.
accounting for about 32% of all recorded deaths. Of these deaths, 85% were due to a heart attack or stroke, both in women and men.
It is estimated that by 2030, 23.6 million people will die from cardiovascular disease annually.
Cardiovascular diseases (CVD) are a number of health conditions that affect the blood circulation, including:
- The heart
- Arteries
- Veins
- Capillaries
Symptoms, treatment and prevention of conditions that are part of so-called cardiovascular diseases may overlap.
There are many treatment methods to reduce the risk of developing these serious conditions.
Let's take a comprehensive look at these diseases and how to prevent and treat.
Types Heart diseases
Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) include many different types of conditions.
Some of these diseases may develop from one condition to another within the group of cardiovascular diseases, as follows:
Congenital heart disease
Congenital heart defect (CHD) is coronary heart disease, the most common(4) form of congenital heart disease that a person is born with.
There are many types of congenital heart diseases, such as:
- Ventricular septal defect: This is the most common type. The wall between the ventricles of the heart does not fully develop, leaving a gap.
- Cyanotic: In this case, the presence of the defect leads to a decrease in oxygen levels in the blood, with bluish fingers and lips, and shortness of breath.
- Coronary heart disease that raises blood pressure: This condition may lead to pulmonary hypertension in the pulmonary arteries, which can lead to shortness of breath, fatigue, dizziness, and possibly fainting.
Coronary artery disease
Coronary artery disease (CAD) tends to develop when cholesterol builds up on the walls of the arteries, leading to the formation of plaques(5) or Arteriosclerosis.
The arteries supplying the heart can narrow and impair blood flow, causing inflammation and hardening of the blood vessel walls.
Therefore, it is recommended to reduce cholesterol levels and not smoke, diabetes, and obesity, as they are risk factors.
Angina
Angina occurs(2) when part of the heart does not receive enough oxygen. You may feel pain, pressure, or pressure in the chest.
There are several types of angina, including:
- Stable angina:Stable angina occurs when the heart works harder than usual, for example, during exercise. It usually lasts about 5 minutes.
- Unstable angina: Angina usually occurs at rest. It is mostly caused by atherosclerosis, which involves a blockage that prevents blood from reaching the heart. The pain lasts longer than 5 minutes.
- Microvascular angina: Microvascular angina may occur with coronary microvascular disease (MVD). A person may experience fatigue, low energy, sleep problems, and shortness of breath.
- Variable angina or Prinzmetal's angina: Variable angina is rare. It occurs when spasm occurs in the coronary arteries. Possible triggers include exposure to cold, stress, smoking, or cocaine use.
Arrhythmia
Arrhythmias [sometimes called dysrhythmias] occur(3) when the electrical signals that coordinate the heartbeat don't work properly.
The heart may beat too fast, too slowly, too early, or with an irregular rhythm. “Normal sinus rhythm” refers to how the heart beats when it is working properly.
There are several types of arrhythmia:
- Atrial fibrillation: Atrial fibrillation is common and develops mainly in adults over 65 years of age.
- Atrial flutter: Atrial flutter usually stems from one area of the atrium that is not working properly.
- Supraventricular tachycardia: Supraventricular tachycardia (SVT) refers to preventing blood from completely filling the heart chambers between contractions.
- Ventricular tachycardia: Ventricular tachycardia (VT) refers to an abnormally fast heartbeat. VT often occurs if the heart has scarring from a previous heart attack.
- Ventricular fibrillation (VFib): The ventricles in the lower chamber do not pump blood, but quiver instead.
- Bradycardia: Bradycardia is when the heart rhythm slows to less than 60 beats per minute for most people. This occurs when there is a problem with the sinoatrial node, which is the heart's natural pacemaker.
- Long QT syndrome: Long QT syndrome refers to a heart rhythm disorder that a person is born with.
Heart attack
A heart attack occurs(6) when there is a loss of blood supply to part of the heart muscle, often due to a blockage in a nearby artery.
Symptoms include chest pain that may spread. It is a medical emergency that needs hospital treatment.
Dilated cardiomyopathy
This is a type of heart failure, in which the heart becomes larger and leads to the body not pumping blood well.
In this condition, the walls of the heart muscle thicken and problems with muscle relaxation, blood flow, and electrical instability develop.
Heart failure
Congestive heart failure (CHF) occurs when the heart does not pump blood around the body efficiently. This can cause symptoms such as lung congestion and swelling due to fluid retention and systolic heart failure.
Symptoms include:
- General weakness
- Cough
- Swelling
- Exhaustion
- Bluish lips and fingers
- Diastolic heart failure
Mitral regurgitation
In this condition, blood leaks through the mitral valve of the heart during contractions.
Mitral valve prolapse
It occurs due to the bulge of part of the mitral valve in the left atrium of the heart during its contraction, causing what is called mitral regurgitation.
Aortic stenosis
This is a narrowing of the heart valve that obstructs the flow of blood out of the heart through the aorta.
Pulmonary stenosis
It is a narrowing of the pulmonary artery that reduces blood flow from the right ventricle through the pulmonary artery to the lungs. The pulmonary artery is the blood vessel that carries deoxygenated blood to the lungs.
Atrial fibrillation
Atrial fibrillation (A-fib) is an irregular heartbeat and a type of arrhythmia.
It can cut off blood flow, causing heart palpitations, chest pain, and shortness of breath. Atrial fibrillation increases the risk of blood clots and stroke.
Medical treatments and surgery may help.
Radiation heart disease
Exposure to radiation to the chest can damage heart valves and blood vessels.
Rheumatic heart diseas
a complication of sore throat and tonsils, which causes inflammation of the heart and can lead to malfunction of the heart valves.
To protect the heart conscious management by making lifestyle changes is needed, but some cases may be life-threatening.
Types vascular diseases
Vascular diseases are diseases that affect the arteries, veins, or capillaries throughout the body and around the heart as well.
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Stages of plaque formation, blood vessels, heart disease, atherosclerosis. Edited by Nazihpharmacy |
These diseases include the following:
Atherosclerosis
It is a serious disease, as deposits form along the walls of the blood vessels, which leads to their narrowing and restriction of blood flow, thus reducing the oxygen reaching the body’s cells.
Atherosclerosis results from:
- High blood cholesterol
- Diabetes
- Obesity
- Lack of physical activity
Peripheral artery disease
Peripheral artery disease is also known as peripheral vascular disease (which includes arteries and veins).
Peripheral artery disease affects blood vessels causing them to narrow, thus restricting blood flow to the:
- Arms
- kidneys
- Stomach
- Most commonly to the legs
Peripheral artery disease is a major risk factor for heart attacks and strokes.
Although this condition can have serious consequences, physical and aerobic activity can significantly improve symptoms.
Renal artery disease
It is a narrowing(10) of the renal artery that carries blood to the kidneys.
Narrowing of the arteries prevents enough oxygen-rich blood from reaching the kidneys.
Decreased blood flow to the kidneys may injure kidney tissue and increase blood pressure throughout the body.
Symptoms of renal artery stenosis include:
- High blood pressure
- High levels of protein in the urine
- Kidney function disorders
- Increased fluid and swelling in body tissues
- Treatment-resistant heart failure
Aneurysm
It is a bulge or enlargement of any artery in the body, and it can develop into rupture and bleeding, so it is a very serious condition. There are severl condition:
- Aortic aneurysm
- Cerebral aneurysm
- Popliteal aneurysm
- Aneurysm of the splenic artery
- Mesenteric artery aneurysm
- Aneurysm of the femoral artery
- Carotid artery aneurysm
- Aneurysms of visceral blood vessels that supply blood to the intestines or kidneys.
Raynaud's disease
Raynaud's syndrome(7), which causes the fingers or toes to turn white, then blue, cold, and numb. This happens when temperatures drop and blood vessels spasm and narrow, reducing blood flow.
As the blood returns, the numbers run red, and it is estimated that females are nine times more susceptible to infection than males
Ischemic stroke
occurs when a blood clot or blood clot travels to the brain and causes damage of varying severity depending on the number or size of the clots.
A stroke occurs(9) when blood flow to part of the brain is reduced. This prevents brain tissue from getting oxygen and nutrients. Brain cells begin to die within minutes.
Another type of stroke is hemorrhagic stroke. It occurs when a blood vessel in the brain leaks or bursts and causes bleeding in the brain.
Peripheral vein disease
It is a condition that includes swelling or swelling in the veins that transport blood from the upper and lower extremities, i.e. the feet and arms, to the heart, causing damage and swelling of the leg and sometimes the occurrence of varicose veins.
Venous blood clots
blood clots that travel through the veins and can break off and become dangerous if they travel to the pulmonary artery and from there to the lungs.
Venous disease affects about one in three adults. Signs and symptoms can include:
- Leg swelling
- Leg pain
- Changes in the skin of the leg
- Leg ulcers
If you notice any of these symptoms, please contact your doctor.
Buerger's disease
This is a clot-forming disease(8) that leads to blood clots and inflammation, often in the lower limbs and may eventually lead to gangrene.
The most common symptoms of Buerger's disease are:
- Pale, red, or bluish fingers or toes
- Cold hands or feet
- Pain in hands and feet
- Pain in the legs, ankles, or feet when walking
- Small painful ulcers appear on the fingers or toes
Blood clotting disorders
It is a serious disease in which blood clots form too quickly or not quickly enough and lead to excessive bleeding or clotting. Both cases are dangerous.
To protect blood vessels, conscious management by making lifestyle changes is needed, but some cases may be life-threatening and require rapid emergency surgery.
Symptoms of cardiovascular disease (CVD)
Symptoms vary depending on the condition. Some conditions, such as type 2 diabetes or high blood pressure, may not cause any symptoms at all at first, but symptoms appear later.
High blood pressure in women during the menstrual cycle results from hormonal changes and is not pathological.
What are the typical symptoms of cardiovascular problems? These include:
- Shortness of breath
- Nausea and fatigue
- Vertigo or dizziness
- Chest pain or pressure, which may indicate angina
- Pain in the arms, left shoulder, elbows, or jaw
- Severe cold sweating
These are the most common symptoms, but cardiovascular disease can cause symptoms anywhere in the body.
Lifestyle tips for heart patients
Heart disease is chronic and serious.
However, people can take the following steps to prevent some conditions associated with cardiovascular diseases from developing negatively:
Exercising regularly
Changing the daily routine by practicing physical and sporting activities such as running and walking restores the heart’s youthfulness.
The American Heart Association (AHA) recommends 150 minutes of moderate to intense physical activity each week.
Sports activities help:
- Reduce blood cholesterol
- Improve blood flow easily throughout the body
Body weight management
The National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Disorders advises that if a person loses 5 to 10 percent of their body weight, they may reduce their risk of cardiovascular disease.
By making the decision to lose weight, you are taking the first step towards a healthy heart away from diseases.
Quit smoking
Smoking is a major risk factor for all forms of cardiovascular disease.
Smoking risks(11):
- Destruction of blood vessel walls
- Contributing to inflammation, which may cause plaque in the arteries
- Altering the natural heart rhythms. Increases blood pressure
- Increases the level of triglycerides in the blood
- The blood thickens and makes it difficult to transport oxygen
It raises the level of harmful cholesterol (LDL).
In both cases, the smoker and the passive smoker are exposed to the same risks.
Taking steps to do so can significantly reduce its harmful effects on the heart.
Follow a heart-healthy diet
Following a healthy diet is the key factor in reviving the heart of people living with cardiovascular disease.
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Tips for heart patients, walking and physical activities, a healthy diet containing vegetables and fruits. Designed by Nazihpharmacy |
A heart-healthy diet includes the following:
- Eating foods that contain omega-3 and polyunsaturated fats such as okra and almonds, as they have many benefits for the heart and blood vessels
- Eating foods containing vitamin D, such as fish, has benefits for the heart, immunity, and bones
- Eat foods rich in anti-inflammatory, as they keep the heart away from infections
- Eating vegetables and fruits rich in vitamin C and fiber has great benefits for the heart, such as oranges, blueberries, and avocados
- Eating whole grains along with fruits and vegetables can support heart health and reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease, such as oatmeal and sesame
Reducing your intake of processed and prepared foods, saturated fats and added sugar has a similar effect.
Treating heart disease
There are many options for treating heart disease, and the options depend on the type of heart and blood vessel disease that the person has.
Some options include:
Medications
- Cholesterol lowering agents
- Antihypertensives
- Regulating heart rhythm
- Vasodilators
- Blood thinners
- Diuretics
Surgery
- Open-heart surgery
- Coronary artery bypass grafting
- Valve repair or replacement surgery
Cardiac rehabilitation
Cardiac rehabilitation is important for patients living with heart disease, and cardiac rehabilitation includes the following:
- Changing lifestyle
- Recipes for appropriate sports activities
- Appropriate healthy food recipes
Treatment aims to:
- Maintain the stability of the condition
- Preventing the condition from developing into another condition that may be worse
- Relieve symptoms
- Preventing complications such as hospitalization, heart failure, stroke, heart attack, or death
- Live a normal life with a partner who helps you forget about your chronic condition
The specialist doctor is the primary advisor for achieving a stable condition.
Causes and risk factors
There are many risk factors for cardiovascular disease.
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There are many risk factors for cardiovascular disease, such as smoking, high cholesterol, bad fats, and lack of physical activity. Designed by Nazihpharmacy |
Including the following:
- Atherosclerosis
- Hypertension
- Inflammatory process, such as myocarditis
- A structural problem present from birth (congenital heart disease)
- Smoking
- Some digestive diseases such as Celiac disease
- Radiation therapy
- Air pollution
- Lack of sleep
- Obesity
- Excessive alcohol consumption
- High-fat diet
- Poor physical activity
- Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder and Stress
- Chronic lung diseases
- Hormone therapy for certain conditions such as menopause in women
People may have more than one risk factor at the same time.
Prevention
Prevention of cardiovascular disease depends on treating the risk factors that lead to cardiovascular disease, by taking the following main steps:
- Eating fresh vegetables and fresh fruits rich in Omega-3, as a basic diet
- Limit the use of alcohol, tobacco and energy drinks
- Reduce your intake of sugar, salt, and foods full of bad saturated fats
- Adopting a lifestyle that suits every situation, especially for children, such as practicing physical activities
Continued exposure to risk factors can contribute to the development of cardiovascular disease later in life, but not at the same time.
But if a person does not know that he has a heart disease, it may appear directly when exposed to one of the risk factors.
Is sex safe for people with heart disease?
Sex for heart patients is safe if you live in a stable heart condition.
According to the American Heart Association(12), heart attacks (or angina) rarely occur during sexual activity, because sexual activity is usually limited in duration.
The action plan includes:
- Monitoring the development of the condition
- Cardiac rehabilitation
- Stabilization of the cardiac condition
- Regular physical activity
It determines the possibility of having sex, especially for women and the elderly.
The specialist doctor is the one who evaluates your condition before resuming intimate relations and avoiding complications.
Does aspirin protect against cardiovascular disease?
Aspirin may cause bleeding(13), and this risk outweighs any benefit it may have.
Many people take an aspirin daily as a routine measure to protect against cardiovascular disease. However, current guidelines no longer recommend this for most people.
A doctor may suggest aspirin as a blood thinner if a person is at high risk for a cardiovascular event, such as a heart attack or stroke, with no risk of bleeding.
The specialist doctor who determines whether a person should take a daily dose of aspirin to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease.
Summary
Cardiovascular diseases are chronic, serious, multi-type, and interconnected, and one disease may develop into another.
Prevention is important and protects your heart, By following a healthy diet and appropriate sports activities.
Good management of the disease rehabilitates your heart and protects it from serious complications.
Cardiovascular diseases
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