An artificial device may be implanted to regulate the heart rhythm, according to the American Heart Association. A heart rhythm can be too fat, too slow or irregular, causing an insufficient amount of blood and oxygen to reach the body. Deficient...
Health care providers use heart scan procedures to get detailed views of the condition and functioning of the heart. These procedures help in diagnosis and management of different medical conditions related to the heart, the blood vessels...
Heart valve replacement surgeries are common procedures done to improve the health of people with heart valve diseases. Heart valves open so blood can flow through the chambers of the heart and flow back out of the heart into large arteries....
Heart ablation, also known as cardiac ablation, is a procedure that is done to treat heart rhythm problems such as atrial fibrillation, atrial flutter and atrial tachycardia. Generally patients with heart arrhythmias have tried other courses of...
The heart rate is a measure of the heart's beats per minute. This rate is important for doctors to assess the health of the heart and body. The American Heart Association reports that a normal heart rate at rest is between 60 to 100 beats per...
According to the American Heart Association, in 2006 alone, over 81 million Americans were diagnosed with heart disease. Heart attacks are no longer the disease of the elderly and cause one out of every three deaths, per the American Heart...
A stent is used to unblock a clogged artery or to repair an aortic aneurysm during a procedure called angioplasty. This procedure will help increase blood flow and improve the patient's quality of life. Arteries can become narrow due to a buildup...
Heart bypass surgery is sometimes referred to as a coronary artery bypass grafting, CABG, in medical terminology. This means that the coronary arteries have blockages significant enough deplete the heart muscle of oxygen and cause chest pain....
The heart is a muscular pump that circulates blood throughout the body, delivering oxygen and other nutrients to the tissues. Congestive heart failure, or CHF, is a condition that makes the heart inefficient and unable to fully perform its job....
The efficiency of the heart as a pump depends not only on the force of its contractions, but also on the correct functioning of its four valves. The valves are subject to a variety of disorders, most commonly the failure to open or close properly....
According to the American Heart Association, in 2008 there were 2,163 heart transplants performed in the United States. A heart transplant is major surgery and is often the last treatment option for patients. The first heart transplant was...
Approximately one-third of Americans are obese, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Physicians and personal trainers typically prescribe exercise as part of the weight-loss solution. A person’s heart rate, even...
According the American Heart Association, there are nearly 1.5 million heart attacks each year leading to more than 400,000 deaths. A heart attack, or myocardial infarction, occurs when one of the coronary arteries that feed the heart muscle...
Procedures to treat heart disease vary from minimally invasive outpatient ones to heart transplant surgery requiring a lengthy hospital stay and recovery time. Heart diseases that require intervention include heart failure, heart attack, blocked...
The four valves of the heart--the mitral, aortic, tricuspid and pulmonic--separate the four chambers of the heart. These valves are critical for maintaining the direction of blood flow through the heart, and when working properly, allow the heart...
Restless legs syndrome is a common problem that can interfere with sleep and cause muscle pain and discomfort. Causes include pregnancy, diabetes, Parkinson's disease, thyroid problems, side effects of some medications, and nutrient deficiencies...
Believe it or not, cholesterol isn't bad. Some of it is necessary for your body to function. When cholesterol levels are too high (or too low in the case of good cholesterol) problems occur. These aren't small problems either--they're bodily...
Cardiac rehabilitation, a recognized form of treatment available in hospitals or treatments centers, is offered to individuals who have survived a heart attack. These rehabilitation programs are a vital aspect for improving the strength of the...
Cardiopulmonary physical therapy rehabilitation is a vital component in recovery for individuals recovering from a heart attack or heart surgery. Cardiopulmonary rehab not only helps patients recover from surgery, it also helps improve your heart...
Cardiovascular technologists are health professionals who work closely with physicians on providing diagnostic testing and treatment of conditions related to the heart and vascular system. These professionals may be trained to provide a multitude...
An atrial septal defect (ASD) is a persistent communication between the upper chambers of the heart. It is present in about one to two percent of the population. The defect results when tissue fails to form correctly between the atria. An ASD...
An ECG treadmill test, also called a stress test, checks for changes in heart function during physical stress. ECG treadmill tests are typically performed in a testing lab and take about 60 to 70 minutes to complete. The results, which are usually...
Nitrates are a class of drugs used to treat cardiac patients and cardiac pain. The most well known type of nitrate is the nitroglycerin pill that's placed under the tongue and used to relieve the pain of angina. Nitrate liquids work faster than...
A stress test is the one time you can be expected to exercise while at a doctor's appointment. A stress test uses exercise as a diagnostic and follow-up tool for many heart conditions, according to Aurora Health Care. This test monitors your...
One of the greatest breakthroughs in medicine occurred on May 2, 1960, when Dr. Robert Goetz performed the first coronary artery bypass surgery at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine-Bronx Municipal Hospital Center. Prior to that first...
There are more than 80 diseases that affect the heart, according to the Cleveland Clinic. There are many tests and procedures that can assist physicians in diagnosing the correct condition. These tests can be grouped according to non-invasive...
According the American Heart Association, heart bypass surgery or coronary bypass surgery treats blocked heart arteries. In this procedure doctors create a new passage for blood flow to a patient's heart. Veins of arteries from other parts of the...
According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), thousands of people undergo some type of heart surgery every day. Some of these surgeries, such as those performed to repair damaged valves, are minimally invasive and considered minor. Others,...
A leaky valve in the heart, called valvular insufficiency or regurgitation, occurs when one of the valves becomes weak. This allows blood to flow backward instead of forward. According to Jeffrey R. Bender, M.D., congestive heart failure is a...
Coronary artery disease, or coronary heart disease, is the end result of the heart muscle losing nutrients due to blockage in blood vessels of the heart. Learn more about coronary heart disease, including warning signs and treatments in this video.
