Heart Diseases

Also called: Cardiac diseases

On this page

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 Disease Risk Assessment (National Library of Medicine) Also in Spanish
Heart Health Tests: MedlinePlus Health Topic (National Library of Medicine) Also in Spanish
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

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
Risks for Heart Disease & Stroke (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)

Treatments and Therapies

Blood Thinners: MedlinePlus Health Topic (National Library of Medicine) Also in Spanish
Chelation for Coronary Heart Disease (National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health)
Five Things to Know about Omega-3s for 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)
Pacemakers and Implantable Defibrillators: MedlinePlus Health Topic (National Library of Medicine) Also in Spanish
Types of Heart Medications (American Heart Association)
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
Heart-Healthy Living (National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute)

Related Issues

Air Pollution, Climate, and Heart Disease (American Heart Association)
All about Heart Rate (Pulse) (American Heart Association)
Diabetes, Heart Disease, and Stroke (National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases) Also in Spanish
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
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)
Take Diabetes to Heart - PDF

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
Heart Palpitations (National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute)
Left Ventricular Hypertrophy (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) Also in Spanish
Myocardial Bridge (Texas Heart Institute) Also in Spanish
Myocardial Ischemia (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) Also in Spanish
Top 10 Myths about Cardiovascular Disease (American Heart Association)

Genetics

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

Health Check Tools

My Blood Pressure Wallet Card - PDF

Videos and Tutorials

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

Statistics and Research

Comparing Heart Disease Treatments (National Institutes of Health) Also in Spanish
FastStats: Heart Disease (National Center for Health Statistics)
Heart Disease and Stroke Statistics (American Heart Association)
High-Dose Influenza Vaccine Shows No Additional Benefit for Heart Disease Patients (National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute)
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 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
Ventricular Assist Device (For Parents) (Nemours Foundation)

Men

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
The Heart Truth for African American Women: Take Action to Protect Your Heart Fact Sheet - PDF
The Heart Truth for Latinas: Take Action to Protect Your Heart Fact Sheet - PDF
The Heart Truth for Women: Take Action to Protect Your Heart - PDF

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