Preventive Cardiology & Hypertension Management
CARDIOLOGY SERVICES
Cardiology
Cardiology is a subspecialty of internal medicine that focuses on heart diseases. Coronary artery disease, congenital heart defects, heart failure, electrophysiology, and valvular heart disease are among the issues it addresses in terms of diagnosis and therapy. Cardiology has several subspecialties, including nuclear cardiology, cardiac electrophysiology, echocardiography, and interventional cardiology.
Risk factors
Inactivity, unhealthy eating, abusing alcohol, and smoking are the main behavioral risk factors for heart disease and stroke. Individuals may experience elevated blood glucose, elevated blood pressure, elevated blood lipids, as well as being overweight. These “intermediate risk variables” can be assessed in primary care settings and point to an elevated risk of consequences like stroke, heart attack, and heart failure.
Symptoms
Heart-related signs and symptoms include:
- dizziness
- breathing difficulties
- sternal pain
- cardiac rhythm alterations
- high blood pressure
Test and Diagnosis
A cardiologist can perform tests for detecting the disease by testing irregular heart rhythms or cardiac murmur. Patients who have experienced heart failure, a heart attack, or other heart issues are frequently treated by them. They participate in the decision-making process for angioplasty, cardiac catheterization, and stenting.
The cardiologist can offer guidance in shielding against heart disease. If a person smokes now or has smoked in the past, has high cholesterol, diabetes, a family history of high blood pressure, or has heart disease and is beginning a new fitness regimen, they may need to see a cardiologist even if they don’t have any symptoms. A woman who has experienced pre-eclampsia may be more susceptible to cardiac issues in a subsequent pregnancy or after menopause.
Hypertension
Blood pressure is the force exerted by the body’s main blood vessels, the arteries, as blood flows against their walls. Hypertension is the medical term for elevated blood pressure.
Doctors denote blood pressure by using two numbers. The first number (systolic) represents the blood vessel pressure created when the heart contracts or beats. The pressure in the arteries between heartbeats is shown by the second number (diastolic).
When blood pressure is tested on two successive days, hypertension is diagnosed if the systolic and/or diastolic values are both below 140 millimeters of mercury.
Risk factors
The following risk factors are modifiable:
- inactivity,
- being overweight
poor diets (inadequate intake of vegetables and fruits, high saturated and trans fat intake, excessive salt intake) - use of alcohol and tobacco
Age over 65, having a family history of hypertension, and having additional illnesses like kidney disease or diabetes are all non-modifiable risk factors.
Symptoms
The phrase “silent killer” refers to hypertension. Because it may not have any symptoms or warning indications, the majority of people with hypertension are unaware they have a problem. It is crucial to periodically assess blood pressure because of this. Some symptoms can be like:
- Nosebleeds,
- Early morning headaches,
- Fatigue,
- Ear buzzing,
- Abnormal heart rhythms,
- Eyesight abnormalities.
Vomiting, nauseousness, anxiety, chest pain, bewilderment, and trembling of the muscles are all symptoms of severe hypertension. Only by having a medical professional take your blood pressure can you identify hypertension.
Lifestyle
Preventing hypertension helps people avoid various health issues like heart attacks, renal damage, and stroke.
Prevention
- consuming less salt.
- eating more vegetables and fruit.
- decreasing or eliminating trans fats from the diet.
- having a regular physical activity schedule.
- avoiding tobacco use.
- consuming fewer foods.
- lowering alcohol intake.
Management
- routinely monitoring blood pressure.
- lowering and controlling stress
taking care of other medical issues. - treatment of hypertension.
You can know more about cardiology and hypertension management by contacting us at Port Charlotte Cardiology.