Five Heart Diseases and Five Ways to Identify Them
Heart diseases are also called cardiovascular diseases. There may be different kinds of these heart diseases. In order to understand the mechanism of all these diseases, it is necessary to understand the importance of heart and its functioning in cardiovascular system. The heart pumps blood through body's blood vessels. This blood contains oxygen which is essential for all cells of the body. If any problem occurs in the functioning of these blood vessels or heart, it can lead to different heart diseases. I will shortly describe five of such diseases.
Arteriosclerosis is the disease that occurs when arteries of the heart become thick and relatively inflexible. In such a condition, arteries become unable to pump blood to various parts of the body effectively. Atherosclerosis is another condition that takes place when cholesterol and fats accumulate in the arteries. This condition makes the flow of the blood difficult. Angina is the condition that brings pain in the chest. This condition indicates that heart is not getting enough amount of blood to process. An individual can get heart attack if any clot or blockage in the heart blocks the supply of blood to any part of the heart. Stroke appears when heart does not get blood due to a clot or burst of the blood vessel.
Most of the people come to know about their cardiovascular disease when they suffer from chest pain, stroke or heart attack. At this point, it is essential to consult any medical doctor as soon as possible. Electrocardiogram is the first technique to detect the electrical activity of the heart. It determines the beat and its efficiency. Stress test is another technique through which functioning of the heart can be assessed. In such a test doctor asks the patient to involve himself in exercise and then he assess the heart functioning through an electrocardiogram. Echocardiogram assesses the functioning of the heart through sound waves of the heart. Carotid artery scan is the technique through which doctors examine the sound waves of the carotid artery which supplies blood to brain. Catheterization is the technique through which a special dye can be entered in the patient's body. This dye can identify various heart problems.
