Heart Disease

Heart disease is a variety of issues that can affect your heart. When people think about heart disease, they often think of the most common type — coronary artery disease (CAD) and the heart attacks it can cause. But you can have trouble with different parts of your heart, like your heart muscle, valves or electrical system.

When your heart isn’t working well, it has trouble sending enough blood, oxygen and nutrients to your body. In a way, your heart delivers the fuel that keeps your body’s systems running. If there’s a problem with delivering that fuel, it affects everything your body’s systems do.

Lifestyle changes and medications can keep your heart healthy and lower your chances of getting heart disease.

What are the types of heart disease?

Heart disease types include:

Narrowing of your heart’s blood vessels because of fatty deposits (coronary artery disease).
Abnormal heart rhythms (arrhythmias).
Heart valve diseases.
Abnormal heart muscle (cardiomyopathy).
Heart squeezing and relaxation difficulties (heart failure).
Heart issues you have at birth (congenital heart disease).
Issues with the fluid-filled sac surrounding your heart (pericardium).

How common is heart disease?

Heart disease is the top cause of death in the United States. In 2021, heart disease caused 1 in 5 deaths. That’s nearly 700,000 people. Coronary artery disease, the most common type of heart disease, caused about 375,000 of those deaths.

Heart disease affects people from most ethnic backgrounds, regardless of sex.

Symptoms

When to see a doctor

Request an appointment

Complications

Blood clots are a dangerous complication of atrial fibrillation (AFib). Blood clots can lead to stroke.

The risk of stroke from AFib increases as you grow older. Other health conditions also may increase the risk of a stroke due to AFib. These conditions include:

High blood pressure.
Diabetes.
Heart failure.
Some types of heart valve disease.

Blood thinners are commonly prescribed to prevent blood clots and strokes in people with atrial fibrillation.

Prevention

Healthy lifestyle choices can reduce the risk of heart disease and may prevent atrial fibrillation (AFib). Here are some basic heart-healthy tips:

Control high blood pressure, high cholesterol and diabetes.
Don't smoke or use tobacco.
Eat a diet that's low in salt and saturated fat.
Exercise at least 30 minutes a day on most days of the week unless your health care team says not to.
Get good sleep. Adults should aim for 7 to 9 hours daily.
Maintain a healthy weight.
Reduce and manage stress.

By Freedmans Health Clinic Staff

Living with atrial fibrillation?

Connect with others like you for support and answers to your questions in the Heart Rhythm Conditions support group on Freedmans Health Clinic Connect, a patient community.