All About Cardiovascular System and Disorders

Electrocardiogram (ECG) records the electrical activity of the heart. Most important role of an ECG is to confirm a heart attack.

There are various causes for systolic murmur, some of which are serious while a large majority are innocent. Innocent murmurs do not require any treatment.

Only those disorders which have produced an abnormality in the electrical activity of the heart can be detected on ECG.

Persons on pacemaker can invariably do light walking. Those with a rate responsive or dual chamber physiological pacemaker can exercise as well.

Heart rate increases in inspiration (breathing in) and decreases in expiration (breathing out). This change is known as respiratory sinus arrhythmia.

Postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS) is characterized by orthostatic tachycardia in the absence of orthostatic hypotension.

Clopidogrel is an aspirin substitute, sometimes called ‘super aspirin’. It acts by a different mechanism and can be given to those intolerant to aspirin.

One defibrillator shock for every two minutes of cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) would mean upto 15 shocks for 30 minutes of CPR.

Tetralogy of Fallot is a combination of congenital heart defects: large VSD, overriding aorta, pulmonary stenosis and right ventricular hypertrophy.

Symptoms of congestive heart failure: Fatigue due to low cardiac output, breathlessness due to pulmonary congestion, swelling of feet due to excess fluid.