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View this video to see how the lack of blood supply affects the heart, the brain, the kidneys and lower extremities. You can see how the progressive obstruction in the arteries of the heart, brain, kidneys and lower extremities lead to events.
Normal Heart
The heart is a hollow muscle that weighs 300 grams. It beats regularly at 60 to 90 beats per minute as it empties into the aorta 60 cubic centimeters (2 ounces) of blood per beat. This is 5 liters of blood per minute, 300 liters per hour or 7200 liters of blood per day. Blood is distributed throughout the body at this rate if the arteries are healthy and unrestricted. The heart pumps blood rich in oxygen and nutrients to all parts of the body using it's own electrical system. it allows the heart to contract regularly in a sequential manner. The rate of output can be regulated by other factors such as emotional and physical stress, by increasing flow 3 to 4 times the normal rate. When there is arteriosclerosis, the blood supply to the heart muscle is limited. The normal heart is a strong, hardworking
pump made of muscle tissue. It's about the size of a person's fist.
The four heart valves are: Each valve has a set of "flaps" (also called leaflets or cusps). The mitral valve normally has two flaps; the others have three flaps. Dark bluish blood, low in oxygen, flows back to the heart after circulating through the body. It returns to the heart through veins and enters the right atrium. This chamber empties blood through the tricuspid valve (B) into the right ventricle. The right ventricle pumps the blood under low pressure through the pulmonary valve into the pulmonary artery. From there the blood goes to the lungs where it gets fresh oxygen (C). After the blood is refreshed with oxygen, it's bright red. Then it returns by the pulmonary veins to the left atrium. From there it passes through the mitral valve (D) and enters the left ventricle. The left ventricle pumps the red oxygen-rich blood out through the aortic valve into the aorta (E). The aorta takes blood to the body's general circulation. The blood pressure in the left ventricle is the same as the pressure measured in the arm. A heart attack occurs when there is restriction to blood flow due to abnormalities in the lining of the arteries that supply blood to the heart. If there is partial restriction in the arteries angina is experienced. If restriction is total and sudden, a heart attack occurs. Most heart attacks are produced by a sudden rupture of a plaque in the lining of a coronary artery. A clot forms around the plaque which blocks the artery. The blockage causes an area of the heart to be deprived of circulation making that area of the heart to die. Warning signs of a heart attack: Each year more than 1 million Americans die of cardiovascular diseases, more than from all other diseases, homicides, suicides, and auto accidents combined. Each year approximately 1.2 million heart attacks occur. Nearly 45% of first heart attacks prove fatal. Most deaths occur during the first hour. 675,000 attacks take place in people under the age of 65. Below are warning signs: What causes a stroke in the brain? 85% of strokes occur due to a similar process to a heart attack; a clot is formed when a plaque ruptures in an artery in the brain. This causes an area of the brain to be destroyed due to lack of circulation. This type of stroke is a thrombotic stroke. 15% of strokes are hemorrhagic and are caused by a rupture in an artery in the brain. This is usually due to severe, untreated hypertension or to abnormalities of the arteries either acquired or congenital. - Sudden
numbness or weakness of the face, arm or leg, especially on one
side of the body. Note: If you or someone with you has one or more of these signs, don't delay! Immediately call 9-1-1 or the emergency medical services ( EMS ) number, an ambulance (ideally with advanced life support) can be sent for you. Also, check the time so you'll know when the first symptoms appeared. It's very important to take immediate action. If given within three hours of the start of symptoms, a clot-busting drug can reduce long-term disability for the most common type of stroke. Many people have a distinctive sound in the neck called "carotid bruit" usually detected by your doctor when he or she listens for it with a stethoscope along your neck, in both sides. If this abnormal sound is present, it indicates a blockage in the area. This blockage is amenable to correction by surgery before a stroke develops Cardiac arrest is the final event that leads to death. Following a heart attack, cardiac arrest can occur as a consequence of severe arrhythmias. The worst type of arrhythmia is ventricular fibrillation, which is seen in 90% of cardiac arrests. Ventricular fibrillation is like an electrical storm of irregular heart beats causing ineffectual contractions in the heart. Without effective contractions, blood is not pumped and circulation stops resulting in death; 10% of cardiac arrests result from ventricular asystole or lack of heartbeats that prevent circulation and result in death. If there is timely intervention before irreparable damage to the brain occurs (3 minutes) proper help could save a life. What is Sudden Death? Sudden Death is an unexpected event. While the most common cause is a heart attack (75%) , it may occur due to other causes. The following conditions predispose to sudden cardiac death:
Signs of cardiac arrest strike suddenly
and many times without warning. Here are the signs: What can you do for the victim?
Surviving a heart attack when alone. Coughing can save your life! If you experience severe pain in the chest
that starts to radiate down your arm or into your jaw, feel
like fainting and you
are alone: Deep breaths get oxygen into the lungs and coughing movements squeeze the heart to keep the blood circulating maintaining a blood pressure. Doing this procedure prolongs the "window" of survival allowing time for help to arrive. They are reported cases of prolongation of this "window" from the critical 3 minutes to 30 minutes resulting in a successful resuscitation. We call this procedure “CPR Thyself”. Remember, this procedure should not be employed after any episode of chest pain; Only if loss of consciousness is about to happen. Cardiovascular disease risk factors (heart attack and stroke): Risk factors induce arteriosclerosis with
cardiac and cerebrovascular disease being the main manifestation.
Arteriosclerosis is the same thing as “hardening of the arteries”.
We need to neutralize risk factors. Some risk factors can be controlled
through changes in life style while other risk factors need to be
monitored with medical testing, medication, and management.
-OTHER NUTRITIONAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS -Heart healthy life style principles: The following are the 5 principles you should
follow to prevent heart attacks and strokes, diseases that can cause
early death, illness, or serious debilitation. The 5principles are
based on research and findings that are current and have been shown
to clearly prevent cardiovascular disease. We recommend that one
follow and incorporate all the principles to live a healthy
lifestyle. View this table to rate your risk factors. The table indicates the likelihood of developing manifestations of heart disease (angina or heart attack). Any man with at least 12 points or woman with 19 points has a 10% risk of developing heart disease manifestations within 10 years and therefore should be treated with lipid lowering agents, regardless of age and individual blood pressure, total cholesterol or HDL-C. There is evidence that elevated levels of C-Reactive Protein alone (over 2.5) have a very high predictive risk importance, even more than LDL values. This is an indication for treatment using statins or other lipid lowering drugs as well as aspirin to reduce inflammation. 2) Practice heart
healthy eating: 3) Maintain physical fitness: 4) Maintain emotional
fitness: 5) Foster friendship
and connection: Following these 5 Principles of heart healthy living can help prevent or even reverse heart disease. Many of us may have to enter a state of TLC – total life style change. Note: Many people put off getting the care that could save lives because they often do not take the warning signs seriously. Although chest pain is usually the most common sign, some people have heart attacks without having chest pain. That is why is important to be aware of other warning signs as well, such as unexplained dizziness, epigastric discomfort, left shoulder or jaw pain, shortness of breath without apparent reason. Anyone who has any of these signs for five minutes or longer should have medical attention right away. Call an ambulance (dial 9-1-1) or have someone drive you to the nearest emergency room, you could be having a heart attack. Do not drive yourself, it could be dangerous to you or others. Many people think a heart attack is sudden and intense, like in the "movies", where a person clutches his or her chest and falls over. The truth is that many heart attacks start slowly, as a mild pain or discomfort. If you feel such a symptom, you may not be sure what's wrong. Your symptoms may even come and go. Even those who have had a heart attack may not recognize the symptoms of the next attack. Women may think they're not at risk of having a heart attack, but they are and commonly they have atypical symptoms. Learn the signs – but also remember if you're not sure it's a heart attack, you should still have it checked out. Fast action can save lives – maybe your own. Act in time to heart attack signs: The dramatic, moving stories of three heart attack survivors and their families illustrate the importance of heeding heart attack warning signs and seeking medical care quickly. They vividly convey how a real heart attack may differ from the stereotypical "movie heart attack" and how getting immediate treatment can save lives. The warm and sympathetic narration by an emergency department physician explains what a heart attack is, the treatments that can save lives if given quickly, why many heart attack victims delay seeking care, and how to make a heart attack survival plan. Useful for health fairs, medical waiting rooms, community groups, and home viewing. Video Play Time: 13 minutes. Act in Time To Heart Attack Signs – Video You must also have RealPlayer version 5.0 or higher on your computer and configured to work with the WWW browser (Netscape, Internet Explorer, etc). If you do not have RealPlayer, you may download a free copy from Real Networks. The latest version is RealPlayer 8. [Information about RealPlayer] Q: Are there geographical differences
with mortality due to cardiovascular disease among the states in
the USA? States colored in red: Mississippi, Kentucky, Tennessee, West Virginia, Oklahoma, Louisiana, Alabama and Indiana, have the worst statistics (possibly due to diet ? -rich in animal fats, too much fried food ?) Q: How does age affect risk factors?
Q: Does occupation and level of
education effect risk levels?
Q: Do married people stay healthier?
Q: Do socioeconomic factors influence
cardiovascular heart disease? Q: In what countries do people have less cardiovascular disease than the USA? A: Japan has the least heart disease because they are leaner in general, eat more fish and vegetables and have a higher degree of activity than in many other countries. France, Spain and Italy are the next in line in terms of the lowest incidence of heart disease. It is believed that the social dining conditions of long and pleasurable meals with lots of conversation and connection, one or two glasses of red wine, the Mediterranean diet, as well as a high degree of physical activity helps to keep these groups more heart healthy. Q: Are children at risk for cardiovascular
disease? Q: Are women and men different regarding
cardiovascular disease? For reasons that are unclear, women have been left out of major research studies in cardiovascular disease until very recently. Most statistics regarding heart attacks and strokes have been gathered primarily by studying the male population. In all fairness this is unjustified since women compose a little over half of the population. Time of onset: Cardiovascular
disease usually shows itself 15 years later in women than in
men. During the previous century women have been out of the main work force, therefore they have been somewhat protected from wear and tear that comes with exposure to stress, hostile environment, competition, and challenge which cause men to become aggressive risk takers. However, in modern times women are narrowing the “gap” very rapidly by entering the man’s world. :Women in general are gentler, softer, and more patient. They do not discharge adrenaline as often and as intensively as men do. Women have, as rule higher levels of HDL- cholesterol. Researchers do not know why. HDL is known to have a significant protective effect against arteriosclerosis. Diagnosis and treatment: Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death among women in this country, surpassing cancer of the breast and all the other forms of cancer. However while the incidence of cardiovascular disease mortality in men has been decreasing since 1970, it is increasing for women. About 500,000 women per year suffer heart attacks. Of these, 42% die within a year. Men suffer about 670,000 heart attacks per year, but only 24% of them die during the first year. The higher mortality among women after a heart attack has to do with differences in presenting symptoms, response to treatment, and other factors that relate to older age at onset of cardiovascular disease. Symptoms: Symptoms can be misleading in women. More women than men have chest pain that is Indistinguishable from angina pectoris, even though they have normal coronary arteries. (proven by coronary arteriography). Clinicians underestimate findings and adverse prognostic significance of stress-test abnormalities found in women. For this reason fewer women are referred for cardiac catheterization and revascularization procedures after abnormal stress tests. The presence of risk factors associated with cardiovascular disease and their control apply equally to men and women. Therapeutic procedures for revascularization (angioplasty, stent placement and coronary bypass) have a higher rate of complications as well as higher mortality in women. One reason why women do less well after coronary bypass may be due to the fact that the internal mammary artery (as opposed to vein grafts) is less frequently used in them. It is unclear why. Cardiac rehabilitation benefits at least 13% of men after a heart attack but only 7% of women. Physicians refer fewer women for cardiac rehabilitation. This could also explain why women do less well than men following a heart attack. Hormonal Replacement Therapy (HRT): The latest information regarding risks versus benefits on the use of HRT in women (typically 0.625-mg estrogens plus 2.5 mg progesterone daily) is as follows: Risks: Benefits: The proper choice regarding the use of HRT remains a difficult one to make. Pros and cons have to be carefully weighed. In our opinion women should make the final decision after all the available evidence is presented to them. Sometimes hot flashes are so unbearable that some women are willing to take a chance using hormone replacement therapy. There is however a group of medications used for depression that effectively suppress hot flashes: Paxil, Celexa, Prozac and Neurontonin, and anti-epileptic drug. Evista, used for osteoporosis and treatment of Cancer de the breast is also effective for suppressing hot flashes. More active research in the subject is being done. Q: Are we improving? Updated July 18th, 2007 |
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Cardio Wellness, Inc. 2004 cardiowellness@comcast.net |
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