CARDIOVASCULAR PATHOPHYSIOLOGY

• Pericarditis

  -refers to an inflammation of the pericardium—the sac that surrounds, protects, and supports the heart
• Infective Endocarditis

  •is an infection of the endocardium (inner layers of the heart) or heart valves
• Myocarditis

  •an inflammation of the myocardium, or heart muscle

  •caused by viral, bacterial, or fungal
• Valvular Disorders

  •cause disruption of normal blood flow through the heart

  •distinguished based one the valve affected and the type of alteration
• Types of Alteration:

  •Stenosis

  •Regurgitation
• Stenosis

  •narrowing of a tubular structure—in this case, heart valves

  •when the valves are stenosed, blood moving through the valve is reduced, causing blood to back up in the chamber just before the valve
• Atresia

  refers to a lack of the valve opening that would otherwise allow blood flow
• Regurgitation

  •also called insufficiency or incompetence, occurs when the valve leaflets do not completely close
• Cardiomyopathy

  •refers to a group of conditions that weaken and enlarge the myocardium

  •may be acquired or inherited
• Dilated cardiomyopathy

  •develops when the ventricles become enlarged and weakened

  •this condition starts in the left ventricle and eventually affects the right ventricle
• Restrictive cardiomyopathy

  •is the least common of the cardiomyopathies

  •characterized by rigidity of the ventricles, leading to diastolic dysfunction
• Heart Failure

  •often referred to as congestive heart failure, is a condition in which the heart is unable to pump an adequate amount of blood to meet the body’s metabolic needs
• Systolic dysfunction

  •characterized by decreased cardiac output due to decreased contractility
• Diastolic dysfunction

  •characterized by decreased ventricular filling from abnormal myocardial relaxation and increased left ventricular pressure
• Mixed dysfunction

  •a combination of systolic and diastolic dysfunction
• Left-sided heart failure

  •result of ineffective left ventricular contractility
• Right-sided heart failure

  •result of ineffective right ventricular contractility
• Dyslipidemia

  •refers to an elevated level of lipids in the blood
• Atherosclerosis

  -is a chronic inflammatory disease characterized by thickening and hardening of the arterial wall
• Peripheral Vascular Disease

  •refers to a narrowing of the peripheral vessels
• Thromboangiitis obliterans, or Buerger’s disease

  -is an inflammatory condition of the arteries
• Raynaud’s disease

  -is a result of vasospasm of the arteries, most often of the hands, that occurs because of sympathetic stimulatio
• Coronary Artery Disease

  •lack of oxygen and decreased or no blood flow to the heart due to coronary artery narrowing/obstruction
• Angina Pectoris

  -severe chest pains generally radiating to the left shoulder and down the inner side of the arm
• Myocardial Ischemia

  -deprivation of oxygen to a portion of the myocardium
• Myocardial Infarction

  -death of the myocardium from a sudden blockage of coronary artery blood flow
• Types of Angina

  • Stable exertional angina
  • Unstable angina
  • Prinzmetal angina
• Hypertension

  -a prolonged elevation in blood pressure
• Types of Hypertension:

  Essential hypertension

  Secondary hypertension
• Shock

  •a clinical syndrome resulting from inadequate tissue and organ perfusion because of decreased blood volume or circulatory stagnation
• vasodilation causes hypovolemia
• Neurogenic shock

  -loss of sympathetic tone in vascular smooth muscle and autonomic function lead to massive vasodilat
• Septic shock

  -a bacterium’s endotoxins activate an immune reaction
• Anaphylactic shock

  -a consequence of an allergic reaction
• Cardiogenic shock

  -results when the left ventricle cannot maintain adequate cardiac output
• Hypovolemic shock

  -venous return declines because of external blood volume losses
• Arrhythmias

  •refers to any change from the normal sequence of electrical impulses, causing abnormal rhythms