Heart diseases have accounted for many deaths in the previous years. It has become so frequent that every 40 seconds, at least one person has a heart attack, and dies from heart-related conditions. The heart is an extremely complex organ and plays a huge role in keeping everyone alive.
There are common types of heart diseases and to find the best treatment, you must look for the best heart hospital nearby. If you want to know the most common heart diseases, keep reading this article.
1. Congenital Heart Disease
The meaning of congenital is “born with some defects”. So, a congenital heart defect is a problem that occurs in the heart from birth. This heart disease can alter the flow of blood to the heart. A few congenital heart diseases might not lead to any extreme issues but others can be extremely life-threatening.
Due to the various treatment and diagnoses, several kids have survived this heart disease. Well, you might not notice the signs and symptoms until you reach adulthood. After all, some symptoms occur late and some don’t occur at all.
For others, symptoms can return even though the individual had a treatment. Some of the common symptoms of congenital heart disease include shortness of breath, swelling of organs or body tissue, a tint to the lips, fingernails, and skin, and tiring after exertion.
You must visit a doctor if you have shortness of breath and chest pain. In case you were treated for it as a child, you must schedule an appointment with your healthcare provider.
Although research is not clear as to why it occurs, some congenital heart defects are passed down from generation to generation.
2. Dilated Cardiomyopathy
Dilated cardiomyopathy is a medical condition where the ability of the heart to pump blood is lessened due to the enlargement and weakening of the left ventricle and main pumping chamber.
In a few cases, it can prevent the heart from filling with blood, which can affect the chambers over time. Many of them don’t display the symptoms and some have minor ones. Some others develop symptoms that can get worse because their heart gets sicker.
The symptoms can happen at any age and can include fatigue, weight gain, swelling of the legs, shortness of breath, chest pain or pressure, sudden death, and so on. Although it can be inherited, it can be caused due to many other reasons.
Some of the reasons include diabetes, thyroid, alcoholism, severe coronary artery disease, viral infections of the heart, heart valve abnormalities, etc.
Your healthcare provider might decide if you have dilated cardiomyopathy after looking at your symptoms, a physical exam, an echocardiogram, a CT scan, an MRI, blood tests, chest X-ray, electrocardiogram, etc.
Also read: The Heart Is Where The Health Is
3. Heart Arrhythmia
Heart arrhythmia is a problem with the rhythm or rate of your heartbeat. It means that the heart beats too slowly or quickly or in an irregular pattern. If the heartbeats are quicker than normal, it is called tachycardia.
And what if the heartbeats are slow? Then, it is called bradycardia. A common type of arrhythmia is atrial fibrillation and it can cause the heartbeat to be fast and irregular.
Many factors can affect the rhythm of the heart such as a heart attack, congenital heart defects, stress, and smoking.
Some medicines and substances might also lead to heart arrhythmia. Some of the symptoms include skipping beats, slow or fast heartbeat, sweating, shortness of breath, and lightheadedness or dizziness.
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It’s great that you talked about how the heart is an extremely complex organ and plays a huge role in keeping everyone alive. I was reading a health magazine last night and one of the topics of their special feature was about heart health. From what I’ve read, it seems heart health services are pretty common nowadays, which is really good to know.