Coronary Heart Disease
Around 28.3% of the UK population over the age of 60 have Coronary
Heart Disease (CHD). This is reduced to 5% for people under 60.
There a many factors that can cause heart disease, these include:
* Being overweight/obesity
* High cholesterol
* Smoking
* Stress
* Diabetes
* Family history of heart disease
* Physical inactivity
* High LDL
A Coronary heart attack takes place when a blockage in the heart's
arteries may partially or completely cut off the blood to a portion of
the heart.
When this happens a blood clot can form and totally cut-off blood flow
in a coronary artery. This can result in a myocardial infarction. This
means blood cannot reach the heart muscle the blockage restricting the
supply of oxygen to the heart. Within 20 minutes of not receiving
blood and oxygen the cardiac muscle begins to die. This means that no
blood is pumped round the body which is quite a serious problem.
The symptoms of a coronary heart attack can be significantly assorted.
Some patients report an extreme vice-like contracting in the chest or
a feeling of a heavy weight being placed on their chest. Other
symptoms aren't as obvious such as a dull ache. Some patients may
report a stabbing, knife-like or a deep burning sensation. The pain is
usually long-lasting, lasting from 30 minutes to a couple of hours.
Changes in the body position or rest don't alter the intensity of the
pain and can, at times, appear to almost go away but then come back
again. Some individuals experience pain radiating usually the left arm
but can happen to both arms with a tingling sensation in the wrists,
hands and fingers. Other pain can occur in the neck, shoulders, teeth
and back. Other symptoms are :
* Nausea
* Vomiting
* Indigestion
The signs and symptoms are pressure, stiffness, pain in the chest or/ and arms that may advanced to the neck, jaw, or back
A hypothesis that can be made from the patient’s report is that she is suffering from cervical radiculopathy, or a nerve root lesion. Symptoms that describe cervical radiculopathy include: arm pain in a dermatome distribution, pain increased by extension, rotation, and/or side flexion, possible relief of pain from arm positioned overhead, affected sensation, altered hand function, no spasticity, and no change to gait or bowel and bladder function (Magee, 2008, p. 142). These symptoms correlate to what the patient reported as a result of her injury. She stated that her pain is in the posterolateral upper and lower arm with aching and paresthesia in the thumb and index finger, which is in the dermatome pattern of cervical root 5 and 6 (C5, C6) (Magee, 2008, p. 25). She also reports lancinating pain with extension or rotation to the right of her head.
“Heart failure is a chronic, progressive condition in which the heart muscle is unable to pump enough blood through to meet the body's needs for blood and oxygen” (American Heart Association, 2012, para 3). What this basically means is that the body is functioning in a way that the heart cannot keep up with. Although heart failure can be acute and occur suddenly, it usually develops over time and is a long-term or chronic condition. There are two different types of heart failure, left-sided and right-sided, and they can be caused by other diseases such as diabetes, coronary heart disease, or high blood pressure (National Institutes of Health, 2012). In most cases, both sides of the heart are affected simultaneously.
In December of 1992, my paternal grandfather suffered a heart attack. He had been hauling several 50 lb. sacks of corn up into the deer feeder on his property by himself. He got into his truck, turned the ignition, put it into drive and before he could take his foot off the brake, he was dead. He was 68 years old. I was thirteen and that seemed so old. I remember that prior to the event there were many conversations within my family about the condition of my grandfather’s heart and cardiovascular system and how he needed to make lifestyle changes. I remember him taking nitroglycerine pills. I remember him coming to Dallas to go to an appointment so that they could perform tests with names like “stress EKG.” I remember that these things meant little to me at the time.
Heart Disease You need your heart for all your body needs. It pumps about 2000 gallons of blood a day. It takes about 20 seconds for blood to reach every cell in the body. An artery that carries blood out of the heart.
Coronary heart disease or coronary artery disease affects 16.8 million people in the United States and causes more than 607,000 deaths annually (Lemone, chap.30). It is caused by atherosclerosis which is the accumulation of fatty deposits in the arteries causing impaired blood flow to the myocardium. CAD or coronary artery syndrome is usually without symptoms but may induce heart attack, angina and acute coronary syndrome if not properly treated. There are many risk factors associated with CAD like obesity, high cholesterol diet, hereditary, physical inactivity, just to name a few. Patients with CAD may be unable to identify and manage their risks factors. It is imperative for nurses to educate the patient about CAD and measures to enhance their health.
One of the leading causes of death in the United States is heart disease. “Approximately every 29 seconds one American will have a heart attack, and once a minute one American will die from a heart attack” (Ford-Martin and Odle, 915). According to the Gale Encyclopedia of Alternative Medicine men over the age of 45 and women over the age of 55 are considered at risk for heart disease. Heart disease is a major cause of death. It is beneficial to individuals who seek to prevent heart disease to recognize the risks leading to heart attacks as they are one of the primary indications of developing heart disease; especially those that fall into the at risk age groups. These risks consist of some that cannot be changed such as heredity risks, or those that can change such as smoking habits. It is very important to know these specific risks for prevention and to understand the symptoms of heart attacks, such as sweating or the feeling of weakness so if these or other symptoms occur people are aware. Finally heart disease treatment is of vital importance if you experience a heart attack so you can learn how to prevent another one from occurring.
Heart disease kills over 600,000 men and women in the United States every year. That translates to one out of every five deaths are caused by heart disease. Heart disease has several factors, but they all contribute to difficulty in blood flow from the heart. It is most often caused by an unhealthy lifestyle such as a poor diet, little exercise, being overweight and smoking. People die from heart disease several ways including heart attack or stroke.
Heart disease is the leading cause of death for both women and men in the United States. It is very important to learn about the heart to prevent heart disease. Many forms of heart disease can be prevented and treat with healthy lifestyle choices. For someone who has heart disease or does not; there is information, facts, symptoms, different types, diagnoses, tests, treatment, care, and living and managing that can be given.
Just as breast cancer is killing our African American women, heart disease is also one of the major diseases killing our women. Heart disease is one of the nation’s leading causes of death in both woman and men. About 600,000 people die of heart disease in the United States (Americas heart disease burden, 2013). Some facts about heart disease are every year about 935,000 Americans have a heart attack. Of these, 610,000 are a first heart attack victim. 325,000 happen in people who have already had a heart attack. Also coronary heart disease alone costs the United States $108.9 billion each year. This total includes the cost of health care services, medications, and loss of productivity. Deaths of heart disease in the United States back in 2008 killed about 24.5% of African Americans.
What causes coronary heart disease? There are several factors that can affect and impair the inferior layer of the coronary arteries which are diabetes, inflammation of the blood vessels, hypertension, smoking, and elevated amounts of particular cholesterols and fats in blood. The risk of getting CHD is obesity/ being overweight, no physical activities, diabetes, hypertension, smoking, family medical history/ genetics, poor dieting, stress, etc.
Heart attacks are known in the medical community as myocardial infractions. Some of the most common symptoms or warning from a heart attack may include chest discomfort due to an uncomfortable pressure, fullness, squeezing or pain in the center of the chest (angina). Another symptom is the discomfort in other areas of the upper body because of pain or discomfort in one or both arms, the back, neck, jaw or stomach. The next one is shortness of breath with or without chest discomfort. Lastly, there are other signs such as nausea, dizziness, lightheadedness or cold sweat. There are some cases when these symptoms are not present or the person is considered to be healthy and a heart attack can strike without any warning sings. (Causes,
Heart disease describes a range of conditions that affect your heart. Diseases under the heart disease umbrella include blood vessel diseases, heart rhythm problems, and heart defects. The major cause of this is a build-up of fatty plaques in the arteries. Plaque build-up thickens and stiffens the vessel walls, which can inhibit blood flow through the arteries to organs and tissues.
Myocardial infarction occurs when the coronary arteries are blocked by a blood clot. It is commonly known as “heart attack”. The heart needs its own constant supply of oxygen and nutrients to work properly. Two coronary arteries delivery oxygenated blood to the heart, and if one of these two arteries fail or become blocked, then a portion of the heart will not acquire the necessary oxygen. This clot could be because of CAD (coronary artery disease), which happens when the inner walls of the coronary arteries thicken because of build up of cholesterol, fatty deposit, calcium among other elements that are carried in the blood (Boston Scientific, 2009).