Facts on File Encyclopedia of Health and Medicine

Risks and Complications There are no risks or complications associated with ECG. Sometimes the ECG technician must shave a small ...

can cause endocarditis; either is potentially life threatening, though bacterial infection is consider- ably more common. Bacter ...

EECP is most appropriate for people who are not receiving adequate relief from medications and would benefit from CORONARY ARTER ...

H heart The organ that pumps BLOODand main- tains circulation. About the size of a closed fist, the heart resides in the chest b ...

When the heart is not beating or cannot beat effectively, oxygen does not get to the body’s tis- sues. Within seconds the body b ...

Depending on the heart attack’s severity (the extent of damage to the heart), a person may return to regular activities within a ...

conditions such as DIABETESandOBESITY(including WEIGHT LOSS AND WEIGHT MANAGEMENT) that can lead to cardiovascular disease. See ...

See also OPEN HEART SURGERY; RHEUMATIC HEART DISEASE. heart rate The number of times in a minute that the HEARTcompletes a CARDI ...

option for severe CONGENITAL HEART DISEASEsuch as hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS) as well as hypertrophic CARDIOMYOPATHYa ...

PERIPHERAL VASCULAR DISEASE(PVD) with symp- toms such as INTERMITTENT CLAUDICATION TRANSIENT ISCHEMIC ATTACK(TIA) PRIMARY PULMO ...

People who have transplanted hearts are vul- nerable to rapidly progressive CAD, HYPERTENSION, and arrhythmias. The transplanted ...

As well, there are correlations, though researchers do not fully understand them, among BIRTH DEFECTSinvolving the heart that oc ...

CULAR DISEASE(PVD). Hyperlipidemia also can cause health conditions such as PANCREATITIS. Some forms of hyperlipidemia are famil ...

decreases the liver’s production of VLDL and low- density lipoprotein (LDL), which curtails triglyc- eride production. Niacin ca ...

sodium consumption, as high amounts of dietary sodium cause the body to maintain fluid. This increases blood volume and, corresp ...

normal pull of gravity causes blood to temporarily pool in the large veins of the legs. Any lapse between the change of position ...

I implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) A small, battery-operated electronic device, similar to a PACEMAKER, that monitor ...

See also CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE PREVENTION; COAGULATION; CORONARY ARTERY DISEASE(CAD); DEEP VEIN THROMBOSIS(DVT); MEDICATIONS TO ...

K Kawasaki disease An acute condition affecting children that can weaken the CORONARY ARTERIES and other cardiovascular structur ...

L left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) The per- cent of BLOODa full left ventricle pumps into the AORTAwith each CARDIAC CY ...