Heart diseases or cardiovascular diseases have become quite common in India, and due to lack of knowledge and casualties, often these diseases remain undiagnosed and result in death. A recent study even shows that one out of four deaths in India is because of heart diseases. And we believe that a little awareness about the symptoms and causes of these diseases can help people timely diagnose them and save themselves before it’s too late.

Here are the 6 most common heart diseases and their symptoms

Coronary artery disease

Coronary artery disease or CAD involves the narrowing and hardening of arteries that are responsible for the supply of oxygen and blood to the heart. It usually takes place because of the accumulation of bad cholesterol on the walls of the arteries resulting in plaques.

This consequently reduces the flow of blood in our heart hence obstructing the proper functioning of the heart, especially during physical activities. In the worst scenario, this clotting even results in deadly heart attacks.

Symptoms of Coronary artery disease usually includes-

Valvular heart disease

Valvular heart disease is also known as heart valve disease is the state of the heart where its valves aren’t able to work properly anymore, hence affecting the blood flow of the body. It’s usually of two types: 

Valvular stenosis and Valvular insufficiency. 

Valvular stenosis usually takes place when the opening of the valve reduces in size due to stiff or fused leaflets, whereas Valvular insufficiency takes place due to leaky valve resulting in backward flow of blood. Both of these situations result in making the heart work harder than usual to complete the natural blood cycle.

 Symptoms of Valvular heart disease are as follows-

  • Palpitation or irregular heartbeats
  • Swelling of your ankles, feet or abdomen
  • Shortness of breath
  • Rapid weight gain
  • Chest pain or discomfort
  • Weakness or dizziness

Cardiomyopathy

Cardiomyopathy usually takes place when the heart muscles enlarge, thickens and stiffens resulting in abnormal function of heart valves. This consequently affects the natural blood cycle of the body but at an early stage of this disease hardly any symptoms are visible. But as the situation worsens the patients start developing various symptoms that people usually ignore and this ignorance usually results in heart failure.

Symptoms of Cardiomyopathy may include-

  • Palpitation or irregular heartbeats
  • Swelling of your ankles, feet or legs
  • Shortness of breath during any activity or even at rest
  • Fainting and light-headedness
  • Weakness or dizziness

Arrhythmia

Arrhythmia is the condition of the heart where your heart starts beating at an irregular rate even at rest. Usually, in most cases, arrhythmia isn’t life-threatening but in a longer period and worse cases this may eventually weaken the heart increasing the chances of a heart attack. 

 Symptoms of Arrhythmias are as follows-

  • Irregular heartbeats i.e slow heartbeats or racing heartbeats
  • Chest pain or discomfort
  • Shortness of breath 
  • Fainting and light-headedness
  • Weakness or dizziness

Congestive Heart Disease

Congestive heart disease is also known as heart failure is the condition of the heart where the heart isn’t able to relax or contract properly i.e not being able to effectively pump the blood in every part of the body. This consequently makes it harder for us to perform our everyday activities as it leads to short breathlessness and fatigue.

Here are some symptoms of Congestive heart disease-

  • Short breathlessness even at rest
  • Congestion in lungs
  • Swelling in legs, ankle, and abdomen
  • Weakness or dizziness
  • Weight gain
  • Palpitation or irregular heartbeat

Congenital Heart Disease

Congenital heart disease is a situation where people are already born with severe heart defects. These are usually of types Cyanotic and Acyanotic and usually diagnosed by the doctors just after birth. But in some cases, this may not be diagnosed at an early age but can be diagnosed later with the help of given symptoms.

Symptoms of Congenital heart disease are as follows-

  • Cyanosis or play blue or grey colour of the lips, finger, and toes (in Cyanotic case)
  • Short breathlessness especially during physical activities
  • Sweating, especially during feedings
  • Low body weight and growth rate
  • Difficulty feeding and poor appetite
  • Fatigue
  • Discomfort in chest

As you can notice most heart diseases have common symptoms such as short breathlessness and fatigue, so if you notice any of these symptoms for a long period especially, if you are a diabetic or hypertension patient make sure to go and get yourself checked at the earliest. 

In case of an emergency, you can reach out to our heart specialist: Dr. Pavan Rasalkar – The best Cardiologist In Bangalore who can provide timely medical guidance

As we know heart diseases usually take some time to develop and adapting a healthy lifestyle at a young age can actually help us to avoid these deadly diseases. 

Here are some simple preventative measures that can help you avoid these diseases and live a healthy lifestyle-

  • Always keep your blood pressure, blood sugar, triglyceride, and cholesterol levels in check.
  • Quit unhealthy habits such as drinking or smoking.
  • Get yourself back in shape.
  • Adopt healthy habits such as having a healthy diet and a regular exercise routine.
  • Try to stay away from food that contains saturated or trans fats.
  • Get proper sleep and stay away from stress.
  • Never ignore even the slightest inconvenience and call your doctor immediately if you feel any kind of unreasonable discomfort or pain in your body for the long run.  

Hope these tips help you to improve your lifestyle and help you to live a heart-healthier life. 

In case of any heart-related queries, you can call us or WhatsApp us on (+91) 9902147888

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