Paul M. Insel,
Stanford University School of Medicine
Walton T. Roth,
Stanford University School of Medicine
| cardiovascular disease (CVD) | The collective term for various forms of diseases of the heart and blood vessels.
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| pulmonary circulation | The part of the circulatory system governed by the right side of the heart; the circulation of blood between the heart and the lungs.
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| systemic circulation | The part of the circulatory system governed by the left side of the heart; the circulation of blood between the heart and the rest of the body.
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| atria | The two upper chambers of the heart in which blood collects before passing to the ventricles; also called auricles.
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| vena cava | The large vein through which blood is returned to the right atrium of the heart.
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| ventricles | The two lower chambers of the heart from which blood flows through arteries to the lungs and other parts of the body.
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| aorta | The large artery that receives blood from the left ventricle and distributes it to the body.
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| systole | Contraction of the heart.
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| diastole | Relaxation of the heart.
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| veins | Vessels that carry blood to the heart.
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| arteries | Vessels that carry blood away from the heart.
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| coronary arteries | Two arteries branching from the aorta that provide blood to the heart muscle.
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| capillaries | Very small blood vessels that distribute blood to all parts of the body.
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| platelets | Microscopic disk-shaped cell fragments in the blood that disintegrate on contact with foreign objects and release chemicals that are necessary for the formation of blood clots.
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| hypertension | Sustained abnormally high blood pressure.
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| atherosclerosis | A form of CVD in which the inner layers of artery walls are made thick and irregular by plaque deposits; arteries become narrow and blood supply is reduced.
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| low-density lipoproteins (LDL) | Blood fat that transports cholesterol from the liver to organs and tissues; excess is deposited on artery walls, where it can eventually block the flow of blood to the heart and brain; "bad" cholesterol.
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| high-density lipoprotein (HDL) | Blood fat that helps transport cholesterol out of the arteries and thus protects against heart diseases; "good" cholesterol.
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| plaque | A deposit of fatty (and other) substances on the inner wall of the arteries.
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| *coronary heart disease (CHD) | Heart disease caused by atherosclerosis in the arteries that supply oxygen to the heart muscle; also called coronary artery disease.
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| *heart attack | Damage to, or death of, heart muscle, sometimes resulting in a failure of the heart to deliver enough blood to the body, also known as a cardial infarction (MI).
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| coronary thrombosis | A clot in a coronary artery, often causing sudden death.
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| angina pectoris | A condition in which the heart muscle does not receive enough blood, causing severe pain in the chest and often in the left arm and shoulder.
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| arrhythmia | A change in the normal pattern of the heartbeat.
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| cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) | A technique involving mouth-to-mouth breathing and chest compression to keep oxygen flowing to the brain.
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| electrocardiogram (ECG or EKG) | A test to detect abnormalities by measuring the electrical activity in the heart.
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| magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) | A computerized imaging technique that uses a strong magnetic field and radio frequency signals to examine a thin cross section of the body; also known as nuclear magnetic resonance imaging (NMR).
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| angiogram | A picture of the arterial system taken after injecting a dye that is opaque to X rays; also called arteriogram.
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| balloon angioplasty | A technique in which a catheter with a balloon on the tip is inserted into an artery; the balloon is then inflated at the point of obstruction in the artery, pressing the plaque against the artery wall to improve blood supply; also known as percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA).
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| coronary bypass surgery | Surgery in which a vein is grafted from a point above to a point below an obstruction in a coronary artery, improving the blood supply to the heart.
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| stroke | An impeded blood supply to some part of the brain resulting in the destruction of brain cells; also called cerebrovascular accident.
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| *thrombus | A blood clot in a blood vessel that usually occurs at the point of its formation.
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| embolus | A blood clot that breaks off from its place of origin in a blood vessel and travels through the bloodstream.
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| aneurysm | A sac formed by a distention or dilation of the artery wall.
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| transient ischemic attack (TIA) | A small stroke; usually a temporary interruption of blood supply to the brain, causing numbness or difficulty with speech.
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| computed tomography (CT) | The use of computerized X ray images to create a cross-sectional depiction (scan) of tissue density.
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| pulmonary edema | The accumulation of fluid in the lungs.
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| congestive heart failure | A condition resulting from the heart's inability to pump out all the blood that returns to it; blood backs up in the veins leading to the heart, causing an accumulation of fluid in various parts of the body.
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| congenital heart disease | A defect or malformation of the heart or its major blood vessels, present at birth.
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| rheumatic fever | A disease, mainly of children, characterized by fever, inflammation, and pain in the joints; often damages the heart muscle.
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| sudden cardiac death | A nontraumatic, unexpected death from sudden cardiac arrest, most often due to arrhythmia; in most instances, victims have underlying heart disease.
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| ischemic stroke | Impeded blood supply to the brain caused by the obstruction of a blood vessel by a clot.
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| hemorrhagic stroke | Impeded blood supply to the brain caused by the rupture of a blood vessel.
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| hypertrophic cardiomyopathy | An inherited condition in which there is an enlargement of the heart muscle, especially between the two ventricles.
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| mitral valve prolapse | A condition in which the mitral valve "billows" out during ventricular condition, possible allowing leakage of blood from the left ventricle into the left atrium; often asymptomatic and usually only requiring treatment in cases of significant leakage.
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| glycemic index | A measure of how the ingestion of a particular food affects blood glucose levels.
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2002 McGraw-Hill Higher Education