Women’s Heart Disease

Archive for the ‘Kinds of Heart Disease’ Category

Ischemic heart disease is caused by coronary arteries, narrowed by deposite, that causes decreased blood flow to the heart.  How does it happen, and what can you do to prevent it?

The Ischemic Heart

The reason for the ”sludge buildup” in the arteries is cholesterol deposits sticking to the artery wall.  This creates a blockage that hampers the free flow of blood to the heart.

The medical term used to describe this is atherosclerosis. In addition, this term is most often interchangeable with arteriosclerosis. Both of these ailments are identical in that they both prevent blood flow from reaching the heart.

The arteriosclerosis is a factor in Ischemic heart disease. The doctors say that cholesterol and triglyceride in high levels are the cause for the plaque.  This means the blockage of blood vessels which feed the heart. As a result, blockage to the heart occurs which then leads to heart attack symptoms such as chest pain, shortness of breath and irregular heart beat.

Here’s something scary, though – some patients may not even feel these symptoms as heart disease can also damage the nerves surrounding the heart.

So here’s what happens:  the plaque that’s ”sludging” your arteries also narrows them.  This, in turn decreases the blood flow.  Continuing on,  this narrowing can lead to the development of angina (a kind of ischemic heart diease).

Angina pectoris is caused by strangling the heart.  Just like lack of oxygen strangles the lungs, lack of sufficient blood flow strangles your heart.  So you get chest pain due to poor blood supply. This puts you in the really high risk category for cardiac arrhythmia and heart attack.

Who is at Risk?

Those who are at risk for ischemic heart disease most likely have a family history of heart disease, high blood pressure, or diabetes.

If the person has had a previous heart attack, they have an increased risk for having another heart attack within 5 years. Regular visits with your physician to monitor any changes in your condition will alert the physician to any potential problems that may crop up.

Ischemic Heart Disease Prevention

The risks for  Ischemic heart disease can be alleviated or eliminated altogether by changes in lifestyle.  You probably already know them, but here they are again (just in case):

• Losing weight
• Stopping Smoking
• Alcohol only in moderation (example, one glass of red wine)
• Add more vegetables and fuits to your diet

While these changes won’t cure ischemic heart disease already present, they can help reduce further damage.

The good news about ischemic heart disease is it can be prevented, or at least lessen its severity. The answer is simple but may not be easy to implement. Changing the way we have been doing things for the past 20 to 30 years takes effort.

But when you think of the alternative, change can be a good thing.