Medical Today

Inflammation promotes blood vessel disease, heart attack and stroke. Volek and co-workers found that a low-carbohydrate diet reduced markers of inflammation and blood fats better than a low-fat diet in people with the Metabolic Syndrome (MS). MS is a group of symptoms linked to poor metabolic health that includes insulin resistance, abdominal fat deposition, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, low HDL (the good cholesterol), inflammation, type 2 diabetes and blood-clotting abnormalities. Low carb diets reduced inflammation and improved blood-clotting regulation better than low-fat diets in people with the Metabolic Syndrome.

Testosterone and the biologically available free testosterone decrease gradually after age 30. Low levels of these hormones are linked to muscle and bone loss, erectile dysfunction, decreased sex drive, psychological depression and reduced self esteem.

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Definition

Angioplasty is a term describing a procedure used to widen vessels narrowed by stenoses or occlusions. There are various types of angioplasty. The specific names of these procedures are derived from the type of equipment used and the path of entry to the blood vessel. For example, percutaneous transluminal angioplasty (PTA) means that the vessel is entered through the skin (percutaneous) and that the catheter is moved into the blood vessel of interest through the same vessel or one that communicates with it (transluminal). In the case of an angioplasty involving the coronary arteries, the point of entry might be the femoral artery in the groin, with the catheter/ guidewire system passed through the aorta to the heart and the origin of the coronary arteries at the base of the aorta just outside the aortic valve.

What is HEART BURN?

Heartburn is the burning sensation which is felt in the chest. This is the most common symptom of a condition called Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD) or acid reflux. A valve-like structure, known as the Lower Esophageal Sphincter (LES), is located at the end of the food pipe which opens during swallowing to allow food to pass into the stomach. The LES muscle then closes quickly to prevent the return (reflux) of food and stomach juices back into the esophagus.

The term coronary heart disease covers a group of clinical syndromes arising particularly from failure of the coronary arteries to supply sufficient blood to the heart. They include angina pectoris, coronary thrombosis or heart attack and sudden death without infarction.