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Over 50 million Americans have heart and cardiovascular related problems. It is the number 1 cause of death and disability in the United States. By the time that cardiovascular heart problems are detected, the disease is usually quite advanced (having progressed for decades) often too advanced to allow successful prevention of major permanaent disbility or death.

Generally, cardiovascular diseases include: arterial enlargements, arterial narrowings, high blood pressure, angina, irregular heart rates, inappropriate rapid heart rate, inappropriate slow heart rate, heart attack, heart enlargement , heart muscle weakness, inflammation of the heart muscleIn medicine ( cardiology), myocarditis is inflammation of the myocardium, the muscular part of the heart. It is generally due to infection ( viral or bacterial). Signs and symptoms The signs and symptoms associated with myocardits are varied, and relate e, overall heart pumping weaknessCongestive heart failure CHF (also called heart failure is the inability of the heart to pump blood effectively to the body, or requiring elevated filling pressures in order to pump effectively. The term heart failure is frequently misused, especially whe, heart valve leak s, heart valve stenosis (failure-to-open fully), infection of the heart valve leafletsEndocarditis is an inflammation of the inner layer of the heart, the endocardium. The most common structures involved are the heart valves. Endocarditis can be classified as either infective or non-infective depending on whether a foreign organism is caus and heart stoppageA cardiac arrest is the cessation of normal circulation of the blood due to failure of the ventricles of the heart to contract effectively during systole. The resulting lack of blood supply results in cell death from oxygen starvation. Cerebral hypoxia, o.

Cardiovascular disease includes:

• Angina pectoris, leading to PTCA or CABG as symptom treatments
• Myocardial infarction (heart attack in lay parlance)
• Transient ischemic attacks (TIA's, mini-strokes in lay parlance)
• Cerebrovascular accidents/ Strokes
• Peripheral artery disease (PAD)

Major risk factors of cardiovascular disease include:

• Pre-existing cardiovascular disease (usually not recognized by people or their physicians until very advanced)
• Diabetes Mellitus
• Less than excellent lipoprotein particle profile
• Smoking
• higher fibrinogen blood concentrations
• upper half of normal and especially elevated homocysteine
• aging and being male (women have more problems after menopause, but hormone replacement therapy worsens rather than improves the risk)
• Hypertension
• Above optimal weight, especially increased intra-abdominal fat (even in people who appear thin)
• Genetic factors (most humans are genetically prone)
• Physically inactive
• Male sex (although cardiovascular disease is also the number health problem for women)
• Positive family history