WHAT IS A HEALTHY HEART?

The heart, which is about the fist size, pumps more than 100,000 times a day of about 2,000 gallons of blood throughout the body.

Made up of 4 major chambers, namely right atrium, right ventricle, left atrium, left ventricle.

It has 4 valves to ensure the blood in the heart flows in the same direction and prevents the blood from flowing backwards.

The heart structure

THE WORKING PRINCIPLE OF HEART

• The right side of the heart receives less oxygen blood  (deoxygenated blood) from cells and organs all over the body.
• The deoxygenated blood will be pump to the lung to be re-oxygenated through Pulmonary Artery.
• The left side of the heart receives rich oxygen blood (oxygenated blood) from the lung.
• It will pump the oxygenated blood to the whole of body through Aorta
• When blood travels around the body, it will supply Oxygen and nutrients to tissue through capillaries.
• At the same time, blood will also picks up Carbon Dioxide and waste material away from tissue.
• The vein returns the deoxygenated blood to the right atrium of the heart  and the cycle begins again.

CORONARY ARTERIES 

• As blood circulates through the Aorta, some of the blood flows through much smaller blood vessel  that surrounds the heart, called Coronary Artery which supplies Oxygenated Blood to the heart.
• This separated circulatory System is called Coronary Circulation which keeps the heart nourishes and oxygenated
• The two main branches of the artery is called Right Main Coronary Artery and Left Main Coronary Artery.

HEALTH PROBLEM ASSOCIATED WITH HEART

 ANGINA

• severe chest pain  due to ischemia (a lack of blood, hence a lack of oxygen supply) of the heart muscle, generally due to obstruction or spasm of the coronary arteries (the heart's blood vessels).
• Chest pain or discomfort above the diaphragm that occurs when the heart muscle does not get enough oxygen-rich blood.
• Angina may feel like pressure or squeezing in the chest. The pain can radiates to the left or right arm and shoulders, neck, jaw and back . It can also feel like indigestion.
• It is not a disease but a symptom of heart problem, usually associated with Coronary Artery Disease.
• There are 3 types of Angina, which are listed below:

a)Stable Angina

Most common type. It occurs when heart works harder than usual and has regular pattern. The pain usually goes after a few minutes after resting or taking medicine.

b)Unstable Angina

Doesn’t follow a pattern. It occurs with or without physical exertion and may not be relieved by resting or taking medicine. It is very dangerous and requires emergency treatment.  It is a sign that heart attack may happen soon.

c)Variant Angina

Coronary Artery Disease (CAD)

• a condition in which plaque builds up inside the coronary arteries. These arteries supply your heart muscle with oxygen-rich blood.
• It occurs when patient is at rest and the pain can be severe, usually between midnight and early morning. Medicine can relief this type of Angina.
• .These arteries supply the heart muscle with oxygen-rich blood.
• Plaque is made up of fat, calcium, protein and other substances found in the blood. When plaque builds up in the arteries, the condition is called atherosclerosis .
• Plaque narrows the arteries and reduces blood flow to the heart muscle. It also makes it more likely that blood clots will form in the arteries. Blood clots can partially or completely block blood flow.
• •The lack of blood flow which supplies oxygen to the heart causes the heart muscle to damage and leads to heart attack.

Congestive Heart Failure (CHF)

  A condition where heart’s function as a pump is inadequate to deliver oxygen rich blood to the tissue in the body. It may be caused by:

a)Diseases that weaken the heart muscle.

b)Diseases that cause stiffening the heart muscle such as viral infections and iron overload.

c)Diseases that increase the Oxygen demand by the body tissue beyond the capability of the heart  such as Anemia and Hyperthyroidism 

CHF affects many organ’s function ability such as:

a)When kidney get less oxygen supply, it will loose its ability  to excrete salt and water. This causes more fluid to retain in the body. The congestion of the fluid in body will also put more strain to the already weak heart and cause it to swell.

b)The lungs may become congested with fluid and decrease the ability of a person to exercise.

c)Excessive fluid may retain in liver thereby impairing the ability to get rid off the toxin and produce essential proteins.

d)The intestines become less efficient to absorb nutrients and medicine.

e)Fluid may also accumulate in extremities, resulting in swelling of the

  ankles and feet (edema).

Cardiac Arrest

• Cardiac arrest is the sudden loss of cardiac function, when the heart abruptly stops beating.
• It stops normal breathing, and the pulse and blood pressure will be absent. Unless resuscitative efforts are begun immediately, cardiac arrest leads to death within a few minutes. This is often referred to as "sudden death" or "sudden cardiac death (SCD)."
• Ventricular fibrillation is the most common cause of cardiac
• arrest. It occurs when the normal, regular, electrical activation of heart muscle contraction is replaced by chaotic electrical activity that causes the heart to stop beating and pumping blood to the brain and other parts of the body.
• Permanent brain damage and death can occur unless the flow of blood to the brain is restored within five minutes.

Heart Attack (Myocardial Infarction)

• Occurs when one of the coronary arteries that supply blood to the heart are blocked, preventing enough oxygen from getting to the heart. The heart muscle dies or becomes permanently damaged. 
• If the blood flow is blocked, the heart starves for oxygen and heart cells die.
• A heart attack can occur as a result of the following:
• 1.The slow build up of plaque may almost block one of the coronary arteries. A heart attack may occur if not enough oxygen-containing blood can flow through this blockage. This is more likely to happen during exercising.
• 2.The plaque itself develops cracks (fissures) or tears. Blood platelets stick to these tears and form a blood clot (thrombus). A heart attack can occur if this blood clot completely blocks the passage of oxygen-rich blood to the heart. This is the most common cause.