Abstract
Awareness of the fundamentals of cardiac anatomy, physiology and various disease states is essential to clinicians managing a patient with cardiac pathology. This chapter summarizes the key aspects of cardiac structure and function, as well as providing an overview of the broad range of cardiac pathology. The chapter discusses the various presentations of cardiac disease and the clinical assessment that is performed. Diseases discussed include those of cardiac rhythm, vessels, valves, and muscle as well as congenital heart disease. The various modalities of investigation and basic principles of management are also reviewed.
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Glossary
- Acute coronary syndrome
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The spectrum of clinical disorders describing patients presenting with acute or unstable chest pain syndromes due to underlying unstable coronary artery disease. This consists of ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI), non-ST-elevation myocardial infarction (NSTEMI), and unstable angina (UA). The differentiation between these clinical entities is based on electrocardiographic (ECG) changes and serum biomarker levels.
- Afterload
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The resistance the ventricles need to overcome to eject the volume of blood.
- Anatomy
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The study of the structures of the human body. This chapter focuses on the anatomy of the heart.
- Bradyarrhythmias
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Rhythm disorders of the heart with a heart rate less than 60 beats per minute.
- Cardiac cycle
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The cardiac cycle consists of systole, the phase of contraction, and diastole, the phase of relaxation.
- Cardiac output
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The volume of blood ejected from the left ventricle each minute. It can be derived by multiplying stroke volume with heart rate, the number of heartbeats per minute.
- Contractility
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The intrinsic contractile ability of the cardiac muscle.
- Coronary angiography
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An invasive interventional cardiology technique commonly performed via femoral or radial arterial access, in which the lumen of the coronary arteries is visualized in detail using special contrast and fluoroscopy X-ray equipment. Coronary angiography provides the basis for percutaneous coronary intervention, in which special guidewires, angioplasty balloons, and stents are used to treat significant coronary artery lesions.
- Coronary arteries
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Arteries which provide blood supply to the heart muscle.
- Coronary artery disease
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Disease of the coronary arteries. The commonest cause of coronary artery disease is atherosclerosis, the buildup of cholesterol-rich inflammatory material, resulting in progressive narrowing of the coronary arteries.
- Echocardiography
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The study of the human heart by ultrasound. It is a useful noninvasive imaging technique that provides detailed assessment of the structure, function, and physiology of the human heart.
- Embryology
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The study of the development of the human body during fetal life. This chapter briefly discusses the fetal development of the human heart.
- Heart failure
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A complex clinical syndrome characterized by cardiac disorders that lead to impairment of the ability of the ventricles to fill (diastolic heart failure) or eject blood (systolic heart failure).
- Physiology
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The study of the normal function of human organs. This chapter provides an overview of the function of the human heart in health (physiology) and in common disease states (pathophysiology).
- Preload
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The degree of stretch in the heart before contraction.
- Stroke volume
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The volume of blood ejected by the left ventricle with each contraction.
- Tachyarrhythmias
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Rhythm disorders of the heart with a heart rate greater than 100 beats per minute.
- Valvular heart disease
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Disorders affecting the heart valves. They consist of a wide range of pathologies in different clinical settings. Common symptoms of valvular heart disease include dyspnea, pre-syncope, and fatigue.
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Xu, B., Stokes, M., Meredith, I. (2016). Fundamentals of Cardiology for the Non-Cardiologist. In: Alvarenga, M., Byrne, D. (eds) Handbook of Psychocardiology. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-287-206-7_3
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-287-206-7_3
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Publisher Name: Springer, Singapore
Print ISBN: 978-981-287-205-0
Online ISBN: 978-981-287-206-7
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