Heart Diseases

Also called: Cardiac diseases

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Summary

If you're like most people, you think that heart disease is a problem for others. But heart disease is the number one killer in the U.S. It is also a major cause of disability. There are many different forms of heart disease. The most common cause of heart disease is narrowing or blockage of the coronary arteries, the blood vessels that supply blood to the heart itself. This is called coronary artery disease and happens slowly over time. It's the major reason people have heart attacks.

Other kinds of heart problems may happen to the valves in the heart, or the heart may not pump well and cause heart failure. Some people are born with heart disease.

You can help reduce your risk of heart disease by taking steps to control factors that put you at greater risk:

NIH: National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute

Start Here

Heart Disease (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) Also in Spanish
What Are Heart Disease and Stroke? (American Heart Association) Also in Spanish
Your Guide to Living Well with Heart Disease (National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute)

Diagnosis and Tests

Cholesterol Levels (National Library of Medicine) Also in Spanish
EKGs and Exercise Stress Tests: When You Need Them for Heart Disease - and When You Don't (ABIM Foundation)
Heart Health Tests: MedlinePlus Health Topic (National Library of Medicine) Also in Spanish
hs-CRP Test (American Association for Clinical Chemistry)
Lipoprotein (a) Blood Test (National Library of Medicine) Also in Spanish
Picturing the Heart (National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering)

Prevention and Risk Factors

Cardiac Risk Assessment (American Association for Clinical Chemistry)
CDC Vital Signs: Heart Age - Is Your Heart Older Than You? (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) Also in Spanish
Heart Disease Risk Factors (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
How to Prevent Heart Disease: MedlinePlus Health Topic (National Library of Medicine) Also in Spanish
Lipid Panel (American Association for Clinical Chemistry)
Risks for Heart Disease & Stroke (American Heart Association, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Department of Health and Human Services)

Treatments and Therapies

Blood Thinners: MedlinePlus Health Topic (National Library of Medicine) Also in Spanish
Cardiac Medications (American Heart Association)
Chelation for Coronary Heart Disease (National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health)
Heart Surgery: MedlinePlus Health Topic (National Library of Medicine) Also in Spanish
Herbal Supplements May Not Mix with Heart Medicines (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) Also in Spanish
Medications: Myths Versus Facts (American Heart Association)
Meditation to Boost Health and Well-Being (American Heart Association)
Pacemakers and Implantable Defibrillators: MedlinePlus Health Topic (National Library of Medicine) Also in Spanish
Time to Talk: Five Things to Know about Omega-3s for Heart Disease (National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health)
What Is a Ventricular Assist Device? (National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute)

Living With

Cardiac Rehabilitation: MedlinePlus Health Topic (National Library of Medicine) Also in Spanish
Coping with Feelings (American Heart Association)
Healthy Recipes (National Library of Medicine) Also in Spanish
Protein and Heart Health (American Heart Association)

Related Issues

Air Pollution, Climate, and Heart Disease (American Heart Association)
Alcohol and Heart Health (American Heart Association)
All about Heart Rate (Pulse) (American Heart Association)
Caffeine and Heart Disease (American Heart Association)
Cold Weather and Cardiovascular Disease (American Heart Association)
Diabetes, Heart Disease, and Stroke (National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases) Also in Spanish
Finding the Right Doctor (American Heart Association)
Flu and Heart Disease and Stroke (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) Also in Spanish
Heart Disease, Stroke, or Other Cardiovascular Disease and Adult Vaccination (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) Also in Spanish
Holiday Stress? Try These Five Tips for a Heart-Healthy Holiday Season (American Heart Association)
Hospice Care (American Heart Association)
Illegal Drugs and Heart Disease (American Heart Association)
Inflammation and Heart Disease (American Heart Association)
Medication Interactions: Food, Supplements and Other Drugs (American Heart Association)
Mental Health and Heart Health (American Heart Association)
People at High Risk for Flu Complications (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
Sexual Health Concerns in Patients with Cardiovascular Disease (American Heart Association)
Single-Parent and Working-Parent Heart Health (American Heart Association)
Sleep Apnea and Heart Disease, Stroke (American Heart Association)
Stress and Heart Health (American Heart Association)
Travel and Heart Disease (American Heart Association)

Specifics

African-Americans and Heart Disease, Stroke (American Heart Association)
Cardiac Amyloidosis (American Heart Association)
Cardiac Sarcoidosis (National Jewish Health) - PDF
Enlarged Heart (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) Also in Spanish
Left Ventricular Hypertrophy (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)
Myocardial Bridge (Texas Heart Institute) Also in Spanish
Myocardial Ischemia (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) Also in Spanish
Overview of Heart Tumors (Merck & Co., Inc.) Also in Spanish
Palpitations (National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute)
Silent Ischemia (Texas Heart Institute)
Top 10 Myths about Cardiovascular Disease (American Heart Association)

Genetics

Genetic Testing for Inherited Heart Disease (American Heart Association)
Genetics Home Reference: familial HDL deficiency (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: Tangier disease (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: Williams syndrome (National Library of Medicine)

Health Check Tools

Heart-Health Risk Assessments from the American Heart Association (American Heart Association)

Videos and Tutorials

Blood flow (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
Cardiovascular system (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish

Statistics and Research

FastStats: Heart Disease (National Center for Health Statistics)
Heart Disease and Stroke Statistics (American Heart Association)
Interactive Atlas of Heart Disease and Stroke (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
Racial and Ethnic Dispartities in Heart Disease (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) - PDF

Clinical Trials

ClinicalTrials.gov: Cardiovascular Diseases (National Institutes of Health)
ClinicalTrials.gov: Heart Diseases (National Institutes of Health)

Journal Articles References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)

Reference Desk

Heart Anatomy (Texas Heart Institute) Also in Spanish
Heart and Stroke Encyclopedia (American Heart Association)
Heart Information Center (Texas Heart Institute) Also in Spanish
How the Heart Works (National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute)

Find an Expert

Children

Commonly Asked Questions about Children and Heart Disease (American Heart Association)
Heart Disease (For Kids) (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish

Men

Heart Disease -- The Top 10 Reasons Men Put Off Doctor Visits (American Heart Association)
Men and Heart Disease (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)

Women

Heart Disease in Women: MedlinePlus Health Topic (National Library of Medicine) Also in Spanish

Older Adults

Heart Health (National Institute on Aging)

Patient Handouts

Aspirin and heart disease (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
Being active when you have heart disease (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
Electrocardiogram (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
Exercise stress test (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
Heart disease - risk factors (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
Heart disease and depression (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
Understanding cardiovascular disease (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
Warning signs and symptoms of heart disease (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish