Disease Care

Heart Disease

Heart disease disrupts a heart's normal electrical system and pumping functions, making it difficult for the heart to pump blood normally. The most common heart diseases, according to the American Heart Association are: heart attack, stroke, high blood pressure and heart failure.

Symptoms

Signs of heart trouble include:

Discomfort, pressure, heaviness, or pain in the chest, arm or below the breastbone
Pain or discomfort radiating to the back, jaw, throat or arm
Fullness, indigestion or choking feeling (may feel like heartburn)
Sweating, nausea, vomiting or dizziness
Extreme weakness, anxiety or shortness of breath
Rapid or irregular heartbeats
Palpitations (irregular heartbeats, skipped beats or a "flip-flop" feeling in the chest)
A faster heartbeat
Pounding in the chest

Diagnosis

Doctors typically conduct these tests when heart disease is suspected:

EKG
Chest X-ray
Stress Test - tests how your heart responds to exertion
Echocardiogram - similar to an ultra-sound
Heart MRI
Cardiac Catheterization - also called a coronary angiogram, means running a catheter into the heart through a small incision in the groin area.
Electrophysiology Test - measures heart rhythm
CT Heart Scan - visualizes the heart's anatomy
Myocardial Biopsy - a catheter removes a piece of the heart tissue for examination
Pericardiocentesi - a needle is used to get a sample of the fluid in the sac surrounding the heart

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