Category Archives: Heart Health

Hot flashes, commonly associated with menopause in women, may also be a sign of a sleep disorder called obstructive sleep apnea and could increase the risk of cardiovascular disease as well as diabetes. Research carried out by the North American Menopause Society (NAMS) published in Menopause explains this relationship. What is obstructive sleep apnea and how ...click here to read more

Iliac artery aneurysm’s (IAA) definition is weakness and bulging in the wall of one of the iliac arteries. Typically, an iliac artery has a diameter no greater than 1.7 centimeters in males or 1.5 centimeters in females—if the size is any wider than this, the artery is aneurysmal. If there is a large iliac aneurysm ...click here to read more

If your heart is suddenly unable to pump enough blood to meet your body’s needs, you may have a condition known as cardiogenic shock. This condition is usually caused by a severe heart attack, but not everyone who has experienced a heart attack has cardiogenic shock. Injury to the heart is the main reason for ...click here to read more

A study by the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) observed high mortality rates in patients suffering from coronary artery disease, also known as Chronic Ischemic Cardiovascular Disease (CICD). A report published in the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology states that 25 percent of these patients either die or are hospitalized again in the first six months ...click here to read more

Renovascular hypertension, or renal hypertension, is commonly diagnosed in older individuals and can be associated with cardiovascular health. Here we answer the question “what is renovascular hypertension?” The quick and simple answer is that it is high blood pressure due to kidney problems. Renal artery stenosis, which is the narrowing of one of the renal ...click here to read more

Relaxing in a steamy sauna may provide more health benefits than stress relief. A recent study has revealed that saunas may also have a positive impact on your heart and blood vessels in ways similar to moderate exercise. The finding tested the effects of a 30-minute sauna session, and researchers found that people who often ...click here to read more

Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is a temporary form of diabetes that develops during pregnancy. This usually happens in the later stages of pregnancy when a pregnant woman’s body requires a lot of glucose but her hormones affect the production and use of insulin. As a result, glucose enters the blood stream instead of being converted ...click here to read more

Cardiomyopathy is a condition where the heart muscle does not function as it should. The main types of this condition include dilated, hypertrophic, and restrictive cardiomyopathy. This condition makes it more difficult for your heart to pump and deliver blood to the rest of your body through the circulatory system. It can lead to heart ...click here to read more

Experts at UT Southwestern and Texas Health Resources have linked heart muscle stiffening and consequent heart-failure risk to a sedentary lifestyle. Our heart has chambers called ventricles. When people lead an inactive lifestyle, the heart muscles become stiff and blood cannot enter the ventricles properly. In extreme cases, the blood even gets pushed back into ...click here to read more

By now, you know what to do in order to keep your heart healthy: Lower your blood pressure and cholesterol, reduce stress, don’t smoke, moderate your alcohol intake, eat healthily, maintain a healthy weight, and exercise. If you do these things, you’re on the right path to a healthy heart. On the other hand, there ...click here to read more

When your doctor wants to check your cholesterol levels, they will give you a blood test requisition along with telling you that you need to fast for at least eight hours prior to completing the test. If you forget to fast before your cholesterol test, your results may not be accurate and the test would ...click here to read more

Ventricular tachycardia (VT) is a disorder where the heart beats faster than normal. It is caused when the electrical signals from the ventricles are irregular. For a person at rest, a normal heart rhythm usually ranges between 60 to 100 beats per minute (bpm); someone experiencing ventricular tachycardia might experience a heartbeat of 100 or ...click here to read more

Heart muscles are often permanently damaged during a heart attack and get even more damaged during an angioplasty – a traditional treatment for blocked arteries that causes heart attacks. However, according to an article published in Science Daily on January 12, 2018, new research at the Eindhoven University of Technology has shown a way of ...click here to read more

Your brain needs blood to function, so when blood flow becomes restricted, problems can arise. One condition known as vertebrobasilar insufficiency refers to reduced blood flow to the back of the brain. Blood travels to the back of the brain through two vertebral arteries, which are joined by the basilar artery. Blockage of these arteries ...click here to read more