Cardiovascular Common Disease and Defibrillator’s Side Effect
Posted by | Published on December 18th, 2007
Cardiovascular disease refers to the class of diseases that involve the heart or blood vessels (arteries and veins). While the term technically refers to any disease that affects the cardiovascular system, it is usually used to refer to those related to atherosclerosis (arterial disease). These conditions have similar causes, mechanisms, and treatments. In practice, cardiovascular disease is treated by cardiologists, thoracic surgeons, vascular surgeons, neurologists, and interventional radiologists, depending on the organ system that is being treated. There is considerable overlap in the specialties, and it is common for certain procedures to be performed by different types of specialists in the same hospital.
Causes of cardiovascular disease
While cardiovascular disease can refer to many different types of heart or blood vessel problems, it’s used most often to describe damage caused to your heart or blood vessels by atherosclerosis. This is a disease that affects your arteries. Arteries are blood vessels that carry oxygen and nutrients from your heart to the rest of your body. Healthy arteries are flexible, strong and elastic.
Over time, however, too much pressure in your arteries can make the walls thick and stiff — sometimes restricting blood flow to your organs and tissues. This process is called arteriosclerosis, or hardening of the arteries, and atherosclerosis is the most common form of this disorder. So if atherosclerosis is the most common cause of cardiovascular disease, you may wonder what ultimately causes atherosclerosis. The culprits are the same risk factors you’ve heard mentioned in connection with heart disease and cardiovascular disease: An unhealthy diet (lots of saturated fats), lack of exercise, being overweight and smoking. All of these are major risk factors for developing atherosclerosis and, in turn, cardiovascular disease.
Some forms of cardiovascular disease aren’t caused by atherosclerosis. Those forms include diseases such as congenital heart disease, heart valve diseases, heart infections or disease of the heart muscle called cardiomyopathy.
Defibrillator Function in Cardiovascular Disease
Defibrillator is a device used in the treatment of life-threatening disturbances of the rhythm of the heart beat which may occur as the result of a heart attack or a variety of serious injuries or illnesses. Its effect is to ‘reset’ the electrical activity of the heart in the hope that the natural pacemaker cells can then regain control of the rhythm. Defibrillation using direct current, in the form of an unsynchronized countershock, is usually the only way to halt ventricular fibrillation. The countershock from the defibrillator produces a sustained simultaneous excitation (and hence contraction) of all cardiac muscle fibres, which can terminate ventricular fibrillation and other abnormal rhythms. The countershock is administered by pressing a button on each of two defibrillator ‘paddles’ placed on the chest wall. Firm pressure is applied to these paddles to ensure good electrical contact with the skin; this also forces air out of the lungs to bring the chest wall in closer contact with the heart. While the shock is discharged, the patient often ‘jumps’ because motor nerves and skeletal muscles are simultaneously, unavoidably stimulated.
Anyway, a pacemaker/implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) insertion is a procedure in which a pacemaker and/or an ICD is inserted to assist in regulating problems with the heart rate (pacemaker) or heart rhythm (ICD).
Implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD)
An implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) looks very similar to a pacemaker, except that it is slightly larger. It has a generator, one or more leads, and an electrode for each lead. These components work very much like a pacemaker. However, the ICD is designed to deliver an electrical shock to the heart when the heart rate becomes dangerously fast, or “fibrillates.”
An ICD senses when the heart is beating too fast and delivers an electrical shock to convert the fast rhythm to a normal rhythm. Some devices combine a pacemaker and ICD in one unit for persons who need both functions.
The ICD has another type of treatment for certain fast rhythms called anti-tachycardia pacing (ATP). When ATP is used, a fast pacing impulse is sent to correct the rhythm. After the shock is delivered, a “back-up” pacing mode is used if needed for a short while.
The procedure for inserting a pacemaker or an ICD is the same. The procedure generally is performed in an electrophysiology (EP) lab or a cardiac catheterization lab.
Important Thing; the Medtronic.Inc Problems
The most important thing right now is a controversial of side effect from defibrillator. Medtronic Inc. has removed its Sprint Fidelis defibrillation leads from the market after five patient deaths have been linked to the devices. Medtronic said that the defibrillator lead can fracture and may have been a contributing factor in the deaths. A fracture in the defibrillator lead can cause a defibrillator to deliver unnecessary shocks to the heart or not operate at all. This information can you found more by visiting this site.
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