Ways of treating cardiovascular disease
Coronary heart disease
Coronary heart disease occurs when a waxy plaque builds up inside the coronary arteries that supply the heart with oxygen. Drugs and surgery can help to control Relating to the heart and the blood vessels. disease.
Medication
Statins are drugs that help to lower cholesterol in the blood. They do this by lowering the production of cholesterol in the The large organ, beside the stomach, which has many functions, including processing substances absorbed by the digestive system and a role in the storage of the body's carbohydrate..
Statins are prescribed for people with heart disease or who have a high risk of developing it. They need to be taken long-term. A type of lipid (fatty substance). levels will rise again if a person stops taking them.
Some studies have raised concerns regarding the side effects of statin use, while others believe they can bring additional positive benefits.
Statins are not suitable for everyone - they should not be prescribed for people with liver disease, or pregnant or breast feeding women.
Some patients taking statins often experience side-effects such as headaches and memory loss. There have been reports of statins being linked with type 2 A serious disease in which the body is unable to regulate blood sugar. and liver damage.
Other people argue that statins should be used more widely. They may protect against other conditions such as A disease in which the brain degenerates and short term memory is lost.. Further research is needed.
Surgical procedures
Stents
Coronary arteries that are blocked or have become narrow can be stretched open and a A device, consisting of a wire mesh tube, used to keep a narrowed or blocked coronary artery open. inserted to restore and maintain blood flow.
They can be used in instances where drugs are less effective, and offer a longer term solution. Stents are made from metal An alloy is a mixture of two or more elements, at least one of which is a metal. and do not lead to an immune response in the patient.
Over 90,000 operations are carried out each year. Risk factors depend on the patient's:
- age
- general health
- whether they have had a heart attack
The operation is safe as it does not involve surgery, but there is a risk of bleeding, heart attack or stroke.
Heart transplants
A An operation to replace a damaged heart with a healthy heart from a donor. is required in cases of A condition where the heart is failing to pump sufficient blood around the body at the appropriate pressure.. A form of heart disease in which one or more of the coronary arteries become blocked, depriving the heart muscle of oxygen. can lead to heart failure. The heart fails to pump sufficient blood and A group of different tissues that work together to carry out a particular function, eg heart and lungs. are starved of Gaseous element making up about 20% of the air, which is needed by living organisms for respiration.. There will be degrees of severity of heart failure.
A A person or organism providing an organ or tissue for transplant. heart is transplanted. In rare cases, a heart is transplanted along with lungs.
A consultant assesses the patient's condition. If other treatments are not managing the heart condition, a transplant may be recommended and a patient will be put on a waiting list. A transplant puts major strain on the body, and the benefits and risks will be evaluated including whether the patient's condition is sufficiently severe and other health factors.
There is a shortage of donor hearts in the UK. Only around 200 transplants are carried out each year in a small number of hospitals.
Artificial hearts are plastic devices used occasionally to keep patients alive whilst waiting for a heart transplant. They can also be used to allow a patient's heart to rest to help it recover.
After the transplant, the patient will:
- need time to heal, recover and build up strength
- have to take drugs called A type of drug that prevents a patient's immune system from rejecting a transplant. for the rest of their life - this prevents the person's immune system from rejecting the donor heart
- have an increased risk of infection because of these drugs
