Terms in L.O. Weeks 5-6 Flashcards
(55 cards)
Any condition brought on by sudden, reduced blood flow to the heart.
Acute coronary syndrome
- Refers to the pressure in the arteries just outside the semilunar valves.
The pressure against which the heart must work to eject blood during systole (systolic pressure)
Afterload
Chest pain due to ischemia of the heart muscle, due in general to obstruction or spasm of the coronary arteries
Angina pectoris
A test that takes X-ray pictures of the coronary arteries and the vessels that supply blood to the heart
Angiogram
A technique for reopening narrowed or blocked arteries in the heart (coronary arteries) without major surgery
Angioplasty
Hardening and narrowing of the arteries because of plaque build up.
Atherosclerosis
Class of medications that reduce your blood pressure. These work by blocking the effects of the hormone epinephrine, also known as adrenaline. When you take these, the heart beats more slowly and with less force, thereby reducing blood pressure. These also help blood vessels open up to improve blood flow.
Beta-blocker
Medication that prevent calcium from entering cells of the heart and blood vessel walls, resulting in lower blood pressure. These arealso called calcium antagonists, relax and widen blood vessels by affecting the muscle cells in the arterial walls.
- Some of these have the added benefit of slowing your heart rate, which can further reduce blood pressure, relieve chest pain (angina) and control an irregular heartbeat.
Calcium channel blocker
The insertion of a catheter into a chamber or vessel of the heart. This is done for both diagnostic and interventional purposes.
Cardiac catheterization
The volume of blood being pumped by the heart, in particular by a left or right ventricle in the time interval of one minute.
Cardiac output
A test used to measure the heart’s ability to respond to external stress in a controlled clinical environment.
Cardiac stress test
A medical condition wherein the heart is enlarged.
Cardiomegaly
Diseases of the heart muscle
Cardiomyopathy
A lipid (fat) which is produced by the liver. Essential in bodily function.
Cholesterol
A condition in which the heart’s function as a pump is inadequate to meet the body’s needs. This occurs when the heart isn’t able to pump blood normally.
Congestive heart failure
The ability of the heart to eject a stroke volume (SV) at a given prevailing afterload and preload.
Contractility
An enzyme (a type of protein) found in muscle and brain. It’s a marker of MI, rhabdomyolysis (severe muscle breakdown), muscular dystrophy, the autoimmune myositides and in acute renal failure.
Creatine kinase
Shortness of breath
Dyspnea
A instrument that uses sound waves to produce images of your heart.
Echocardiogram
Swelling caused by excess fluid trapped in your body’s tissues.
Edema
A test that records the heart’s electrical activity.
Electrocardiogram
A form of hypertension that by definition, has no identifiable cause.
Essential hypertension (aka primary or idiopathic)
The use of special drugs to break up blood clots blocking a major artery.
Fibrinolytic therapy
The stroke volume of the heart increases in response to an increase in the volume of blood filling the heart (EDV) when all other factors remain constant. The increased volume of blood stretches the ventricular wall, causing cardiac muscle to contract more forcefully (the so-called ____________). The stroke volume may also increase as a result of greater contractility of the cardiac muscle during exercise, independent of the end-diastolic volume.
Frank-Starling mechanism
