Disorder of blood circulation (part 1)

  1. Hypertension: It is the most common disease affecting the heart and blood vessels.
  2. A blood pressure of 120/80 mmHg is considerednormal. But the increase in blood pressure beyond 140 mmHg (systolic) and 90 mmHg (diastolic) is called high blood pressure (hypertension).
  3. A diet full of oily food, is known to increase cholesterol level, causing thickening of the arteries which results in high blood pressure.
  4. Tobacco smoking increases the heart rate, contracts blood vessels and raises blood pressure. High blood pressure can harm heart, brain, kidneys and eyes. Arteriosclerosis It is the hardening and thickening of the arteries due to the sition of calcium salts and cholesterol. Such artery loses the property of distension and its walls may rupture, resulting in the formation of clot or thrombosis in the coronary artery leading to heart attack and even death.
  5. Angina pectoris Sclerosis of the coronary arteries can cause pain in the chest. This anginal pain usually starts in the centre of the chest and spreads down the left arm. The chest pain may be associated with restlessness, fear or anxiety, a pale skin, profuse sweating and vomiting (all because of increased adrenergic discharge).
  6. The pain lasts for only a few moments Heart failure (congestive heart failure) It is a collection of signs and symptoms that occur when the heart fails to pump an adequate cardiac output. Heart failure is not the same as cardiac arrest (when the heart stops beating) or heart attack (when the heart muscle is suddenly damaged by inadequate blood supply) Rheumatic Heart Disease (RHD) The patient may have an acute rheumatic fever, joint pains and infection of throat.
  7. Rheumatic fever may cause permanent damage of one or more valves (mitral or aortic semilunar valves, pericarditis and myocarditis. Its causative factor is Streptococcus bacteria. Ebstein's disease It is a congenital downward displacement of the tricuspid valve into the right ventricle. Fibrillation Fibrillation is a condition in which the heart muscle contracts very rapidly but in an uncoordinated fashion. There are atrial and ventricular fibrillation.
  8. Ventricular fibrillation is life threatening unless it can be stopped by defibrillation. A machine called a defibrillator is used to do this. Cardiac arrest It is the complete stoppage of the heart beat (sudden and complete loss of cardiac function).
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