The heart is an important cardiac muscle that beats within the center of the chest. It contains such major blood vessels as the coronary arteries and aorta. The heart also consists of an electrical pathway that determines the heart's exact rhythm....
Orthopnea refers to a symptom in which shortness of breath occurs while lying down. This can cause people to awake in the middle of the night in order to catch their breath. Sometimes, orthopnea is a sign of an underlying medical problem. There...
A list of complications can result from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or COPD, exacerbation. Exacerbation is to make an already bad situation worse, such as the symptoms already associated with COPD, which often affect the entire body,...
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or COPD, affects 12 million Americans, according to the Merck Manual, and is the second most common cause of death. COPD also runs second only to heart disease as a cause of disability that affects people...
The heart and lungs work together to keep a person alive. The heart pumps blood, which has been oxygenated by the lungs, to the rest of the body. The heart and lungs also need an oxygen-rich blood supply to function properly. Breathing problems...
Oxygen is an essential element for the human body to function normally. When you breathe in, the oxygen travels through your lungs and into the blood stream, where red blood cells pick it up to distribute it throughout the body. Poor air intake,...
Pulmonary heart disease, or cor pulmonale, is a condition where the right side of the heart fails, caused by long-term high pressure in the right ventricle and pulmonary arteries. In a normal heart, the right side pumps blood under lower pressure,...
Swelling of the feet and ankles is usually due to a condition called edema, which is swelling caused by the accumulation of fluid in the body's tissues. Although swelling may not seem like a major health concern, edema usually occurs when major...
The heart is a four-chambered muscular organ that beats from 60 to 100 times per minute in the average adult. The heart responds to the body's need for more oxygen by increasing the heart rate or slowing down when the body is at rest. Many...
Lung scarring usually occurs when scar tissue forms within the lungs or near the blood vessels surrounding the lungs. A previous lung infection, such as pneumonia, as well as fungal infections and certain medical conditions, such as cystic...
Emphysema causes a permanent change in the structure of the lung, impeding the exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide. Smoking most often causes emphysema, but in rare cases, heredity causes an impaired immune response. Symptoms during end stage...
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or COPD, is a common lung disease in which the airflow gets blocked, making it difficult for the individual to breathe. There are two main types of COPD: emphysema and chronic bronchitis. With emphysema, the...
Asbestos is a long, thin, fibrous mineral found in such products as vinyl floor tiles, cement and insulation. According to the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR), asbestos is a dangerous substance that can cause cancer and...
Sickle cell anemia is a genetic disease that causes the normal red blood cells to form a sickle shape during periods of deoxygenation. The main component of the disease is the erythrocytes (red blood cells) change from the normal discoid shape to...
Bronchial inflammation, or bronchitis, is an inflammation of your bronchial tubes, or airways. There are two main types of bronchitis: acute and chronic. Both types of bronchitis share many symptoms, including chest discomfort, wheezing,...
Shortness of breath that occurs at any time can be a sign of a serious underlying medical condition. However, treatment may be delayed due to dismissing this symptom as a sign of being out of shape or just getting older. Shortness of breath should...
According to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, exercise helps people with cystic fibrosis improve their fitness, decrease the rate of lung function decline and increase their self-esteem and confidence. Although almost all people with cystic...
Being tired after exercise is normal, but exhaustion may be a sign of something serious. Rest is an essential part of a fitness plan because your muscles grow at rest, not while you are exercising them. If you are experiencing fatigue that seems...
Acute bronchitis is a health problem characterized by inflammation of the mucus membranes lining your bronchial tubes. The Children's Hospital Boston states that acute bronchitis is usually a mild condition that may be caused by a virus,...
Bronchitis is an infection of the bronchi, or main lung airways, that leads to inflammation. The National Health Service of the United Kingdom states that anybody may develop this health problem, although the likelihood is greater in certain...
Bronchitis is inflammation of the tubes that bring air into and out of your lungs. There are two types of bronchitis: acute and chronic. Acute bronchitis usually resolves quickly, whereas chronic bronchitis often lasts for prolonged periods before...
A heart rate below 60 beats per minute is classified as bradycardia. The consequences of this condition relate to insufficient cardiac output and may result from a heart medication you are taking. The goal of beta blocker therapy is to reduce the...
A key element in a medical diagnosis is the matching of symptoms and signs to an underlying process produced by disease or altered body function. Naming that disease by its primary cause is directly related to the symptoms and test results. For...
A number of rhythmic processes are responsible for your body function, with the inhalation and exhalation of breathing being a prime example. Commonly overlooked because of its automatic function, breathing is an essential process that can be...
Darvocet, a prescription narcotic pain reliever containing propoxyphene and acetaminophen, can be quite effective at eliminating pain. However, taking Darvocet is not without risk, which is why the drug comes with a few warnings. People interested...
Exercise intolerance is the inability to perform physical training due to muscle aches, shortness of breath or nitric oxide deficiency. Nitric oxide, or NO, is a free radical gas produced by endothelial cells, neurons and skeletal muscle cells....
BMI (body mass index) is an easy, inexpensive method of predicting the percentage of your body weight that is due to fat mass. BMI is found by dividing your weight (in lbs.) by your height squared (in inches) and then multiplying by 703. In...
