Cardiovascular Diseases Research Paper

Systolic heart failure is characterized by enlarged ventricles that are unable to fully contract to pump enough blood into circulation to adequately perfuse tissues. The enlargement in ventricles is due to an increased end-systolic volume. If the heart is not able to sufficiently pump the expected volume of blood with each contraction, which in a normal healthy heart is 50-60%, there will be a residual volume left in the heart after every pump (Heart Healthy Women, 2012). With the next period of filling, the heart will receive the same amount of blood volume from the atria combined with that residual volume from the previous contraction. This causes the ventricles to have to dilate to accommodate this increase in volume. The dilation causes the walls of the ventricles to stretch and become thin and weak. Also the myocardium, the muscle layer of the heart, will stretch and not be able to adequately make a full and forceful enough contraction to push blood from the ventricles (Lehne, 2010).

In cardiomyopathy the heart muscle becomes enlarged, thick or rigid, and in rare cases the muscle tissue can be replaced with scar tissue. As this disease worsens, the heart becomes weaker and unable to pump blood normally through the body and maintain a normal electrical rhythm. This can lead to heart failure or irregular heartbeats. The weakening of the heart also can lead to other problems such as heart valve problems. Cardiomyopathy can be acquired or inherited. It can affect people of all ages. There are various types of cardiomyopathy includes, hypertrophic, dilated, restrictive cardiomyopathy, Arrhythmogenic right ventricular dysplasia and unclassified cardiomyopathy. Some people with cardiomyopathy will never have any signs and symptoms. But in some people the signs and symptoms will develop in the early stages of the disease. As cardiomyopathy worsens and the heart weakens, signs and symptoms of heart failure usually occur. The signs and symptoms of cardiomyopathy includes, shortness of breath or trouble breathing, especially with physical exertion, fatigue, swelling in the ankles, feet, legs, abdomen, and veins in the neck. Other signs and symptoms may include dizziness, light-headedness, fainting during physical activity, irregular heartbeats, chest pain, especially after physical exertion or heavy meals, and heart murmurs. The treatment of cardiomyopathy include lifestyle changes, medicines, surgery, implanted devices to correct arrhythmias (National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute,

HCM happens when the heart muscle enlarges and thickens without an obvious cause. Usually the ventricles, the lower chambers of the heart, and septum thicken. The thickened areas create narrowing or blockages in the ventricles, making it harder for the heart to pump blood; however, in very few instances the heart actually contracts with much greater force causing an obstruction to the blood flow (CMUK, 2015). HCM also can cause stiffness of the ventricles, changes in the mitral valve, and cellular changes in the heart tissue.

The major causes of diastolic heart failure are hypertension-induced myocardial hypertrophy and myocardial ischemia-induced ventricular transformation (coronary artery disease). Hypertrophy and ischemia cause a decreased ability of the myocytes to actively pump calcium from the cytosol, resulting in impaired relaxation. Some of the other causes are aortic valvular disease and cardiomyopathies. Diabetes can also lead to diastolic heart failure (Huether and McCune 2012). Other risk factors for this disease are chronic kidney disease, obstructive sleep apnea, and older age. There are two types of the heart failure: systolic heart failure and diastolic heart failure. In systolic heart failure, the left ventricle has difficulty contracting and ejecting blood into the circulation, which causes reduced left ventricular fraction. On the other hand, diastolic heart failure has a slow and delayed relaxation and increased chamber rigidity, which then causes inadequate filling of blood and

Also this condition is more common in men than women. 10% of the kids born with hypoplastic left heart syndrome usually have some other type of birth condition. The parts of the body that don't form correctly and cause this condition are the Aorta, enter and exit of the ventricle, and the mitral and aortic valves.

Common symptoms of Cardiomyopathy are dyspnea (breathlessness) and peripheral edema (swelling of the legs). It starts with the muscle becoming hard, thick, and engorged sometimes becoming replaced with scar tissue. As the muscle rigidifies, the heart weakens, is less bale to pump oxygen through the body, and starts to falter. Heart beat becomes irregular (called arrhythmias) and fluid can build up in lungs, ankles, feet, legs, or abdomen.

The rapid degeneration of myocardial fibers and diffuse inflammation lead to ventricular dilation and hypertrophy which cause atrial enlargement and stasis of blood in the left ventricle (Park, 2008). The enlargement of the remaining heart chambers is mainly due to left ventricular failure, but it may also be secondary to the primary cardiomyopathic process. Dilated cardiomyopathy is associated with both systolic and diastolic dysfunctions, with decreased systolic function being the predominant abnormality (Parker, 2008). This dysfunction leads to decreased contractility and general contractile dysfunction (Parker, 2008). Progressive dilation can lead to significant mitral and tricuspid regurgitation, which may further decrease the cardiac output and increase end-systolic volumes and ventricular wall stress. In turn, this leads to further dilation and myocardial dysfunction (Friedberg, 2008). Dilated cardiomyopathy is the most common type of heart muscle disease in pediatrics (Chow, Ateah, Scott, Ricci, & Kyle, 2013). Dilated cardiomyopathy can be a life threatening condition and can decrease life expectancy if severe damage occurs. Currently, the five-year survival rate for children diagnosed with dilated cardiomyopathy is between forty and eighty percent. The survival rate decreases if they child is diagnosed at five years or older (Friedberg, 2008).

Other forms of secondary restrictive cardiomyopathy include scleroderma, Friedreich’s Ataxia, hemochromatosis, glycogen storage disease and sarcoidosis. Chemotherapy and radiation therapy used to treat cancer can also cause restrictive cardiomyopathy. Sarcoidosis is caused by the infiltration of granulomas in the heart and other tissues of the body. Lungs and lymph nodes are the main organs targeted by this disease, but no organ is spared as it also affects the central nervous system and skin. In the USA, the occurrence in the white population is estimated to be 11 per 100,000. It affects people between the ages of 20 to 30 years and occurs more in women than in men (Dubrey, Bell, Mittal, 2007). Hemochromatosis is caused by the buildup of iron in the heart tissue which can then lead to heart arrhythmias. Scleroderma is a disorder of the connective tissue that leads to fibrosis of the skin, heart and lungs. Glycogen storage disease, also named Pompe’s affects infants. It causes increased storage of glycogen and fat tissue in the body. This causes the heart then to become very heavy and thick. Infants tend to struggle to breath, have trouble feeding and fail to meet developmental steps on time like rolling over and sitting up.

Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy is a genetic disease that causes the heart muscle to become thickened (Maron, 2015). According to the Mayo Clinic (n.d.), hypertrophic cardiomyopathy is a genetic disorder; however, environmental or lifestyle factors may influence how and when the disease appears in individuals.

Cardiomyopathy refers to diseases of the heart muscle (NHLBI, ___) In cardiomyopathy; the heart muscle becomes enlarged, thick and rigid. The disease causes the heart to become weak and less able to pump blood through the body and maintain a normal electrical rhythm. His will lead to heart failure, or irregular heartbeats called arrhythmias. Heart failure causes fluid to build up in the lungs, ankles, feet or abdomen.

Heart-related diseases may come in two forms, both of which originate with the condition of the mouth:

Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy is characterized by interventricular septal hypertrophy (in absence of other cardiovascular conditions), causing decrease of left ventricle cavity and potentially leading to outflow obstruction. (1) (6) As a consequence of mutations in several genes encoding for thick and thin filaments which build the cardiac muscle, morphological changes occur leading to tangled, thickened myocardial fibers. It is an important cause of morbidity and mortality. Symptomatology varies a lot, from asymptomatic patients to those with severe cardiac function impairment. Some of the most common symptoms of HCM, which are not specific to this disorder may be: shortness of breath at rest or with exertion, fatigue, chest pain, arrhythmias, dizziness, but not only.

828). Early identification is important and it is most commonly caused by aortic stenosis, genetics and hypertension. According to Kupper and Mitchell, “the four main characteristics of hypertrophic CMP are 1) massive ventricular hypertrophy; 2) rapid, forceful contraction of the left ventricle; 3) impaired relaxation; and 4) obstruction to aortic outflow,” (Kupper & Mitchell, 2014, p. 828). Patients can appear asymptomatic or may present with dyspnea that is caused by an elevated diastolic pressure (Kupper & Mitchell, 2014, p. 828). Fatigue, angina, and syncope may occur due to a decrease in cardiac output, an increase in left ventricular muscle mass, or an increase in obstruction to aortic

The heart is divided into four chambers. The thickening usually affects the pumping chamber on the lower left (left ventricle). HCM may also affect the valve that lets blood flow out of the left ventricle (mitral valve). Symptoms often begin at about age 30.

There are two types of causes for ischemic cardiomyopathy. The first type is an unknown cause while the other type is known. The first familiar cause for ischemic cardiomyopathy is coronary artery