Babies Parenting Tips

Symptoms and signs of heart diseases:

Chest pains or breathlessness are the early signs of heart diseases when the person feels tightness, burning pain, heaviness and pressure behind the breastbone. Mental health disorders can be treated under the supervision of skilled professionals like any other diseases depending totally upon the circumstances and symptoms exhibited by the person. Mental health disorders are very closely associated with coronary heart diseases. When the blood supply is cut off, the unfortunate result is the heart attack.

Heart disease facts:

Heart disease is related to two conditions, which are myocardial infarction (heart attack) and angina pectoris. Mental health disorders and heart diseases are two major causes for disability in a person. Exercise is the best potential way to improve mental health and they can slow down the risks of heart disease is.

It can cause adverse cardiovascular outcomes in the patients with the history heart disease. The symptoms of depression like fatigue, loss of interest in work and activities, loss of appetite, weight loss, and restlessness interfere with the normal functioning of the heart thus leading to heart disease.

Treatment:

Mental health disorder and heart disease can lead to extreme sickness and death. It has been established that risks of heart diseases is 2-6 times more common in patients having mental health disorders. Heart disease or cardiac disease is a general term used to cover all the malfunctions of the heart.

They are more likely to resort to smoking and drinking and thus leading to hypertension. Exercise relieves stress, strengthens muscles, gives confidence, and strengthens the cardiovascular system. However, symptoms of depression should not be confused with symptoms of cardiac failure or heart attack. There are several mechanisms which link stress and depression with cardiovascular diseases.

The pain is usually in the chest or left arm. High levels of insulin and cholesterol also increases the risks of heart diseases like heart attacks and cardiac failure. A healthy nutritional diet with regular fluid intake, fruits and vegetables, limiting sodium, avoiding foods with high saturated and trans fats like red meat, whole milk should be avoided.

Depression and anxiety also chronically elevate levels of stress hormones and thereby diverting the body metabolism meant for tissue construction needed to repair the heart diseases. Heart is one of the most important organs of our body. Only the health professionals can evaluate the heart diseases after conducting intensive tests.

Strategies for promoting a healthy heart: The diagnosis of heart disease in relation to other mental health disorders are the wakeup call alerting you to view your own habits that might be harmful or worsen the disease.

Mechanisms that link heart diseases to mental health disorders:

Psychosocial factors like stress, depression, anxiety, and other mental health disorders are the stronger risk factors associated with heart diseases when compared with other health defects. Smoking and drinking which are normally taken to combat stress should be avoided since they lead to increase in heart rate and blood pressure.

Mental health disorders lead to physiologic changes such as cardiac rhythm disturbances, hyper-cogulability and inflammation. These signs usually call for immediate medical intervention. If the oxygen rich blood does not reach the heart the person develops a pain called angina.

When the arteries carrying nutrients and oxygen to the heart become narrow and clogged, it results in coronary heart disease. Small portions of meal with low fat diets and protein rich should be taken.

One of the possible mechanisms is that patients with depression and stress are less likely to comply with medical advice. Prescribed medication under proper supervision, cognitive behavioral therapy which promotes adherence and behavior change, can increase the impact of pharmacological and behavioral approach to both the diseases.

It acts as a pump, which supplies oxygen rich blood to different parts of the body in order to maintain a healthy body. The support of your family and friends helps you in the transition to a healthy lifestyle. Hence, preventing mental and heart diseases plays a vital role in improving the chances of survival. Several measures can be adopted to reduce the symptoms of heart diseases.

Congestive Heart Failure (CHF) is a clinical condition which is the final result of severe heart disease. It is usual that when a dog has heart failure, heart disease is also present in the body. However, it is true that in some cases, heart disease can be present, but never lead to congestive heart disease.

When high diastolic pressures in the heart build up into the veins and capillaries, then congestive heart failure can occur, which in turn causes a leakage of fluid out of those vessels.

Heart failure is the end result of many different cardiac and pericardial diseases. These include:

? Decreased myocardial contractibility. This is a weak heart muscle, which is commonly seen with dilated cardiomyopathy.

? Valvular regurgitation. This is a leak in one of the four heart valves, as seen with mitral and tricuspid regurgitation.

? Increased myocardial stiffness, which impairs the heart’s ability to fill with blood.

In the beginning, the signs of congestive heart failure can be quite mild and difficult to see. However the symptoms can become more severe in a short space of time. Some of the symptoms to look for are:

? Lack of energy – the dog becomes much less active and tires quickly during the later stages of congestive heart failure;

? Poor appetite;

? Weight loss;

? Heavy breathing – the dog can show signs of difficulty in breathing, panting and coughing whilst resting;

? Coughing;

? Swollen abdomen – the dogs’ stomach can enlarge as fluid accumulates in the liver and abdomen; and

? Change of mouth color – the color of the membranes of the mouth can be grayish rather than being a healthy pink color.

The first thing that is needs to be done though, is to manage the clinical signs of congestive heart failure by reducing the formation of edema and effusion and to increase the cardiac output, which is the delivery of blood to the tissues.

There are a wide variety of treatments available for Congestive Heart Failure, depending on the severity of the condition.

One of the most popular drugs used for this disease is Digitalis. This is a medication which belongs to a group called positive inotropic agents which help to increase the concentration of calcium in the heart muscle cells.

Diuretics are also another well known drug used for dogs with this condition. These drugs help to remove built up fluids that occur in the lungs and abdomen.

Monitor your dogs attitude and any changes in appearance when you spend time with your friend. It is essential to keep a diary of anything that varies from “the norm” so that you can show it to your vet. Check your dog on a daily basis for:

- breathing, see if it is heavy or labored;

- loss or reduction of appetite;

- restlessness;

- fainting; and

- profound lethargy.

However, it is important to remember, that canine congestive heart failure is a major disease and it is a necessity to have regular visits to your veterinarian to ensure that your dogs’ needs are being met.

The breed of Irish Wolfhound as a whole is both healthy and hearty, but occasionally can suffer from heart disease. There are different types of heart disease which can affect the breed, but the most common type of heart disorder is called dilated cardiomyopathy or DCM. More recently, many wolfhounds have died because there was not enough veterinarian research done to correctly diagnose the problem. DCM is now more well-known, particularly in breeds like the Irish Wolfhound which are prone to developing the condition.

When an Irish Wolfhound is affected by DCM, the muscles of the heart grow so weak that is becomes enlarged as a way of the body compensating for the condition. The heart undergoes arterial fibrillation, which means the rhythm becomes irregular. Most cases of DCM lead to complete heart failure. It is important to recognize the two different types of the condition. In one type, an Irish Wolfhound will display early symptoms of the disease. Some symptoms can include fluid retention, weight loss, and intolerance to physical activity and exercise and may appear as if having a heart attack. If an electrocardiography (ECG) is done, it might indicate an irregular or rapid heart rate as well as other anomalies that an ultrasound scan will display.

In the second kind of cardiomyopathy, an Irish Wolfhound might show nothing abnormal or irregular on an ECG or ultrasound examination, the dog may not even show symptoms or signs of the condition and may appear to be in overall good health. However, the dog may suddenly go into heart failure and not respond to treatment. There is also a third type of cardiomyopathy that only affects young dogs, showing up in those under the age of two and usually happens while they are active. Unfortunately, this type of DCM results in sudden death.

Despite the many different symptoms that can present with DCM, the most obvious sign is weight loss. Another symptom of the condition is when an otherwise active dog exhibits periods of resting in between exercising or taking a walk. The dog may also have pale gums which can be a sign of poor circulation, you can physically check the pulse rate of the dog by placing your hand on the chest near the heart area or by feeling the inside of the dog’s thigh for signs of heart beat.

Other symptoms of DCM include a cough that may sound like the dog is clearing its throat. If the Irish Wolfhound is experiencing fluid retention, it can indicate that abdominal pains are being experienced. Anytime your Irish Wolfhound is showing any of the above mentioned symptoms, a visit to the veterinarian should be scheduled promptly in order to avoid any negative or fatal consequences.

Knowing what signs and symptoms present with DCM allows an owner to be proactive in the dogs health and well being. Prompt medical intervention and knowing the hallmark signs of DCM, can result in saving the life of your Irish Wolfhound.