Heart diseases are diseases of the heart and the blood vessel system within the heart. Many people are surprised to learn that there many different heart diseases. In fact, there are over 50 types of heart diseases, the most common being coronary artery disease. This confusion may stem from the fact that coronary artery disease is often referred to simply as "heart disease."
Heart diseases fall within the broader category of cardiovascular diseases, which are conditions that not only affect the heart, but also the blood vessel system (arteries, capillaries, and veins) within a person's entire body, such as the brain, arms, legs, and lungs. "Cardio" refers to the heart; "vascular" refers to the blood vessel system.
Some people are born with heart diseases (such a disease is known as a congenital heart disease); others develop during a person's lifetime. Because there are so many types of heart diseases, it may be helpful to categorize them based on the areas of the heart or blood vessel system they affect, such as:
- Arteries and veins
- Electrical system
- Heart chambers
- Heart muscle itself
- Heart valves
- Heart lining.
The arteries and veins are blood vessels attached to the heart. The coronary arteries supply oxygen and nutrient-rich blood to the heart muscle; the coronary veins remove waste products from the heart muscle. Types of heart diseases that affect the coronary arteries and veins include:
- Angina pectoris, or just angina, including:
- Stable angina
- Unstable angina
- Variant angina (also known as Prinzmetal's angina or coronary artery spasm)
- Heart attack, also known as a myocardial infarction or MI
- Coronary artery disease (CAD), also known as ischemic heart disease, coronary heart disease (CHD), or just heart disease
- Atherosclerosis, or hardening of the arteries
- Silent ischemia.
Electrical System
The electrical system within the heart is responsible for ensuring that the heart beats correctly so that blood can be transported to the lungs and the rest of the body. To do this, an electrical signal spreads out over the heart muscle through the electrical system. They can cause a fast, slow, or irregular heartbeat, called an arrhythmia.
Examples of arrhythmias include:
- Sinus tachycardia
- Sinus bradycardia
- Atrial fibrillation
- Heart block, including first-degree AV block, second-degree AV block, and complete AV block (third-degree heart block)
- Bundle branch block, including left bundle branch block and right bundle branch block
- Premature atrial contractions (PAC), also known as premature atrial complexes
- Atrial flutter
- Multifocal atrial tachycardia
- Supraventricular tachycardia (SVT), also known as atrial tachycardia
- Paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardia (PSVT), also known as paroxysmal atrial tachycardia
- Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome (WPW)
- Premature ventricular contractions (PVC), also known as premature ventricular complexes
- Ventricular tachycardia
- Ventricular fibrillation
- Long QT syndrome
- Brugada syndrome, also known as sudden unexplained nocturnal death syndrome (SUNDS).
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