Cardiovascular diseaseMicrograph of a heart with fibrosis (yellow) and amyloidosis (brown). Movat's stain.SpecialtyCardiologyUsual onsetOlder adults[1]TypesCoronary artery diseases, stroke, heart failure, hypertensive heart disease, rheumatic heart disease, cardiomyopathy[2][3]PreventionHealthy eating, exercise, avoiding tobacco smoke, limited alcohol intake[2]TreatmentTreating high blood pressure, high blood lipids, diabetes[2]Deaths17.9 million / 32% (2015)[4] Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is a class of diseases that involve the heart or blood vessels.[2] Cardiovascular disease includes coronary artery diseases (CAD) such as angina and myocardial infarction (commonly known as a heart attack).[2] Other CVDs include stroke, heart failure, hypertensive heart disease, rheumatic heart disease, cardiomyopathy, heart arrhythmia, congenital heart disease, valvular heart disease, carditis, aortic aneurysms, peripheral artery disease, thromboembolic disease, and venous thrombosis.[2][3] The underlying mechanisms vary depending on the disease.[2] Coronary artery disease, stroke, and peripheral artery disease involve atherosclerosis.[2] This may be caused by high blood pressure, smoking, diabetes, lack of exercise, obesity, high blood cholesterol, poor diet, and excessive alcohol consumption, among others.[2] High blood pressure results in 13% of CVD deaths, while tobacco results in 9%, diabetes 6%, lack of exercise 6% and obesity 5%.[2] Rheumatic heart disease may follow untreated strep throat.[2] It is estimated that 90% of CVD is preventable.[5] Prevention of atherosclerosis involves improving risk factors through: healthy eating, exercise, avoidance of tobacco smoke and limiting alcohol intake.[2] Treating risk factors, such as high blood pressure, blood lipids and diabetes is also beneficial.[2] Treating people who have strep throat with antibiotics can decrease the risk of rheumatic heart disease.[6] The use of aspirin in people, who are otherwise healthy, is of unclear benefit.[7][8] Cardiovascular diseases are the leading cause of death globally.[2] This is true in all areas of the world except Africa.[2] Together they resulted in 17.9 million deaths (32.1%) in 2015, up from 12.3 million (25.8%) in 1990.[4][3] Deaths, at a given age, from CVD are more common and have been increasing in much of the developing world, while rates have declined in most of the developed world since the 1970s.[9][10] Coronary artery disease and stroke account for 80% of CVD deaths in males and 75% of CVD deaths in females.[2] Most cardiovascular disease affects older adults. In the United States 11% of people between 20 and 40 have CVD, while 37% between 40 and 60, 71% of people between 60 and 80, and 85% of people over 80 have CVD.[1] The average age of death from coronary artery disease in the developed world is around 80 while it is around 68 in the developing world.[9] Disease onset is typically seven to ten years earlier in men as compared to women.[11] no data less than 70 70140 140210 210280 280350 350420 420490 490560 560630 630700 700770 more than 770 There are many cardiovascular diseases involving the blood vessels. Continue reading →

AnginaAngina manifests as pain in the chest that results from reduced blood supply to the heart (ischemia). Blood carries oxygen around your body and depriving the heart of oxygen has serious consequences.Angina is caused by atherosclerosis, that is the narrowing and / or blockage of the blood vessels that supply the heart.The typical pain of angina is in the chest but it can often radiate to the left arm, shoulder or jaw. If you have angina you will have noticed that the pain is related to exertion and is relieved by rest.An angina attack is also associated with shortness of breath and sweating Continue reading →

How is heart (cardiovascular) disease diagnosed? The diagnosis of cardiovascular disease begins by taking the patient's history. Continue reading →

Millions of people experience irregular or abnormal heartbeats, called arrhythmias, at some point in their lives. Most of the time, they are harmless and happen in healthy people free of heart disease Continue reading →

A sugar-laden diet may raise your risk of dying of heart disease even if you arent overweight. So says a major study published in JAMA Internal Medicine. Added sugars make up at least 10% of the calories the average American eats in a day Continue reading →