Circulatory disorder in the heart

definition

A circulatory disorder in the heart is an obstruction of the blood flow through the corresponding blood vessels. The blood flow can be restricted or completely interrupted. The circulatory disorder can occur both acutely and chronically and affect any part of the body.
Circulatory disorders in the heart, in the brain or in the arms and legs are particularly common.

They usually have serious consequences because the blood is a means of transport for many important substances, such as oxygen, with which the organs must be supplied at all times.
The brain has the shortest tolerance time for not using oxygen, the heart, on the other hand, still functions for a few hours without oxygen.
The consequences of the disease differ from organ to organ and depend on the duration of the occurrence of the circulatory disorder. A circulatory disorder in the heart is often coronary artery disease. Here, the blood supply to the heart muscle is through an occlusion or narrowing of the coronary vessels, too Coronary arteries called, not guaranteed.

Symptoms

The Circulatory disorderaffecting the heart express mostly through Chest pain. These occur predominantly suddenly on or them start out mild and then will fast very strong.
Also stole the pain into the left arm of many patients.
In addition, the reduced blood supply can cause shortness of breath and severe exhaustion come.
In most cases a patient will be involved physical exertionsuch as exercise or other physical activity symptomatic. Also one Fluid build-up in the legs can on a decreased heart pumping capacity suggest that there may be a circulatory disorder. It is important to note that the symptoms in both men and women vary can and also very unspecific symptoms Do not rule out a circulatory disorder in the heart.

Signs

An advanced form of the arteriosclerosis as well as increased Cholesterol levels in the blood can be the first signs of a following Circulatory disorder Clues.
Also go hereditary vascular diseases or Occlusive diseases in peripheral arteries and veins with one increased risk of circulatory disorders at heart.
Generally should Changes in the skin, such as extreme paleness or bluish discoloration, feeling very cold on the fingers and toes, which occur frequently Numbness or cramps observed and assessed by a doctor.
Chest pain and a are also considered signs of circulatory disorders in the heart Tightness when breathing, which occurs depending on exertion.

causes

The blood flow through the Coronary arteries, so the vessels that the Supplying the heart muscle with oxygen and nutrients, can either be through a Narrowing the vessel opening or through a Heart muscle be hindered.
In most cases, there is a narrowing of the vascular opening chronic cause, namely one Calcification of the vessel wall and the emergence of so-called Plaques. In summary, this clinical picture is also arteriosclerosis called.
Here it comes to Hardening of the arterial wall by deposits of fats, lime, connective tissue or blood clots. Damage to the innermost layer of the vessel wall causes a Inflammatory response caused, which allows the deposition of plaques. This disease is one of the age damage the vessels and is to varying degrees in almost every person found above the age of twenties.

A Vascular obstruction is through a acute event conditional and is called embolism designated. This involves the flooding of material into a vessel opening that is used for Interruption of the blood supply leads. This material can be a Atherosclerotic plaque that suddenly loosens and gets through the bloodstream to the small vessels, but it can also be a blood clot, fatty tissue, tumor or foreign body.

In addition to the direct circulatory disorder of the coronary arteries, in the case of coronary artery disease, it can also be called Result of vascular inflammation, arterial occlusive disease or Venous insufficiencies and Blood clots to a Circulatory disorder come to the heart.

Circulatory disorder in the heart

A circulatory disorder in the heart muscle is roughly the precursor to a fulminant heart attack. Depending on how pronounced the circulatory disorder is, the person affected will experience different symptoms.

1. If the blood supply is slight for a few seconds, slight stitches can be felt in the area around the heart.
2. If the reduced blood supply lasts for several minutes, so-called angina pectoris occurs. Patients suffer from enormous chest tightness. It is often described as having a heavy stone on your chest. In the worst case, this condition can persist permanently, but this feeling usually disappears after 15 to 30 minutes at the latest.
   This can lead to the death of the first myocardial cells if they have to survive long enough without oxygen. The dead heart muscle cells are no longer replaced by the body.
   Read our articles on this: Causes of angina or symptoms of angina pectoris
3. The last and worst stage is the heart attack. Certain parts of the heart muscles are completely separated from the blood supply. In the process, those heart muscle cells that lie in the supply area of ​​the blocked coronary artery go under. The underlying factor can spontaneously disappear again or has to be removed - usually with the help of a cardiac catheter.
   Read also: Preventing signs of a heart attack or a heart attack

Circulatory disorder of the coronary arteries

The cardiac cranes ensure the direct blood supply to the heart. Because although the heart is constantly flowing through with blood, the heart muscle cannot draw its nutrients from this blood, but needs a separate blood supply.
This results in the problem of a circulatory disorder of the coronary arteries: The heart is damaged and can no longer work normally, so that the rest of the body is insufficiently supplied with blood.
In total, the heart has two branches from the main artery, which are divided into a total of three coronary vessels. Circulatory disorders can affect either all of the coronary arteries or just a few.
As a rule, constrictions tend to form in places where smaller blood vessels branch off. The circulatory disorders of the coronary arteries can be felt either permanently or only temporarily. For example, vigorous physical exertion can temporarily cause chest tightness. One speaks of angina pectoris.
If a complete blockage of one of the coronary arteries has occurred, one speaks of a manifest heart attack. This means that a certain section of the heart muscle is no longer supplied with oxygen-rich blood, so that if this condition lasts too long, heart muscle cells will die.

diagnosis

First, if a circulatory disorder is suspected, the patient's medical history is taken, paying particular attention to risk factors and symptoms.
A side-by-side comparison of blood pressure should then be carried out to provide information about blood flow and possible vascular narrowing in the arms.
The routine examinations also include taking blood and examining the cholesterol levels, as well as clotting and blood sugar in order to assess the risk of arteriosclerosis.

If there is a suspicion of a circulatory disorder, the doctor can use Doppler sonography, i.e. a special display method of the blood flow and the flow of the blood based on the principle of ultrasound, to look for constrictions and occlusions.
Here, the device with the transducer is placed on an artery and the doctor can normally hear the whipping sound of the blood flow over a loudspeaker.
If this cannot be heard, the vessel has either been missed or there is a severe circulatory disorder.

Read more on the topic: Doppler sonography

The heart-specific examinations include:

• the electrocradiogram
• Echocardiogram
• Exercise EKG

A number of imaging tests such as:

• Cardiac MRI
• Scintigraphy
• Computed Tomography
  and
• roentgen
  as well as minimally invasive procedures like the
• Angiography
  or
• the intravascular ultrasound.

These examinations are not performed by a general practitioner, but by a cardiologist. The heart MRI in particular has brought further progress in diagnostics in recent years.

EKG

If a circulatory disturbance in the heart is suspected, both a resting ECG and a stress ECG should be performed, because the circulatory disturbance can lead to angina pectoris or a heart attack.
Since a heart attack can be diagnosed using an ECG, this examination is mandatory. The contraction of the heart muscle is responsible for the pumping function through the heart.
In order to stimulate these muscles, the heart usually sends an electrical impulse from the sinus node, the natural pacemaker in the heart, which spreads over the entire heart.
This electrical excitation can be conducted through the skin on the chest wall.

For a resting ECG, twelve leads of the heart rhythm are measured over the chest. This enables an acute heart attack to be diagnosed or excluded. However, angina pectoris cannot be seen in the ECG.

The stress ECG is the standard for the clarification of a circulatory disorder in the coronary arteries and can be carried out both as an initial measure and as a follow-up after therapy.
It is performed either on a stationary bike or on a treadmill. The intensity is gradually increased up to the individual load limit, while the doctor pays attention to severe symptoms of the patient and changes in the ECG.
This can be explained by a reduced supply of oxygen to the heart due to a narrowing of the vessels, because the heart needs more oxygen during physical exertion than when it is at rest.
Often times, at the beginning of a circulatory disorder, the heart can still ensure a balance of the oxygen supply, which is why the stress ECG is an important early detection measure. The examination is most effective when it is combined with an imaging procedure such as a cardiac ultrasound in order to rule out other reasons for an abnormal stress ECG.

therapy

At the onset of a circulatory disorder in the heart, this can usually be managed through a healthier lifestyle, a low-fat diet and sufficient exercise. Here the doctor should weigh up the symptoms and risk factors before initiating further therapy.
In the early stages of arteriosclerosis, drug therapy can be very helpful. These include blood-thinning drugs such as Aspirin®, cholesterol-lowering drugs, beta-blockers, calcium channel blockers and nitrates.
However, these must be taken daily and continuously to reduce the risk of a heart attack or embolism.

Read more on the topic: Medication circulatory disorder

If this treatment is inadequate, invasive measures must be taken to promote blood circulation. As a minimally invasive therapy method, balloon angioplasty of the coronary artery is available to widen the vascular opening. This can be done through the skin. A subsequent stent implantation prevents the enlarged vascular opening from closing again.
In addition, the blood supply to the heart can be improved through bypass surgery, which is either minimally invasive or by opening the chest.
During this operation, a healthy vessel is removed from the leg or arm, for example, or an artificial vascular substitute is used. This is connected to the blood vessel in front of and behind the vasoconstriction and thus restores a continuous blood flow.
This operation can be performed on a beating heart or on a heart that has stopped working, the function of which is replaced by a heart-lung machine.

Also read the article on the topic: Which doctor treats a circulatory disorder?

Sports

Sports Has two important functions relating to Circulatory disorders.
Physical activity and exercise is an important one Preventive measure and can especially with arterial occlusive disease the oxygen supply and the training of Bypass cycles to promote blood circulation.
Sport also helps with Reduction of obesity and is often associated with a healthy diet. This eliminates some risk factors at the same time. Sport is also important in the Diagnostics and early detection of circulatory disorders. Because with physical activity the Musculature an increased oxygen requirement and that The heart has to perform betterto cover this.
In the case of severe vasoconstriction or even a vascular occlusion, this is not possible and the patient receives early symptoms such as shortness of breath and tightness in the chest or Pain.

What sport can I do with a circulatory disorder of the heart?

No sport is excluded from the outset with cardiovascular diseases. However, there are sports that are more suitable and others that are less suitable. Some sports are rather discouraged, but no sport is strictly prohibited.
Basically, sports with constant, constant, but low to moderate intensity are best suited. They strengthen the cardiovascular system without overloading the body. Sports that are popular and recommended from a medical point of view therefore include jogging, hiking, Nordic walking, but also swimming or cycling.
But strength training is no longer a taboo either. If you do not train with heavy weights, but with a focus on endurance, this sport also has a protective effect on the coronary arteries.
Furthermore, so-called cardiac sports groups are offered in many communities or associations. Mostly gymnastic exercises are performed here. In addition, the mutual exchange of experiences is another important point in the foreground.
However, you cannot prescribe a general pulse value or the like. This changes with the level of training and is also subject to strong fluctuations from person to person. Sweating during exercise is not a problem, and even more desirable. However, you should still be able to talk to each other while exercising.