Atherosclerosis

Coronary Artery disease is a cardiovascular disease that develops from excessive plaque buildup in the arteries, which obstruct blood flow and increase the risk for heart attack and stroke. This disease can be heredity but may also develop as one gets older. The numbers of deaths reported yearly from this disease are quite high. There are many obvious symptoms and risk factors associated with this disease that one should never ignore. There are numerous amounts of measures one may take in order…

Implantation of a stent within a coronary artery alters the local hemodynamics modifying the shear stress upon the endothelium. 14 Low endothelial shear stress causes a phenotypic change in which can induce a phenotypic switch in the smooth muscle cells from contractile to secretory as well as increase migration into the intima and proliferation. 15 Overall, regular or high endothelial shear stress maintains the contractile phenotype of the smooth muscle cells therefore inhibiting neointimal…

Heart attack is medically known as myocardial infarction (MI) and normally happens when the heart muscle is starved of oxygen-rich blood, causing damage to the heart muscle (British heart Foundation, 2014). According to NICE guidelines (2014) heart attacks are mostly caused by coronary heart disease (CHD). CHD is when coronary arteries that supply the heart muscle with oxygen-rich blood become narrowed by a gradual build-up of fatty material within their walls. Heart attack is known to be common…

Cardiovascular disease, also known as CVD, is a killer that does not discriminate and affects people around the globe. “CVD is the most common cause of death worldwide, with 30% of all deaths attributed to the disease (World Health Organization (WHO) 2013” (Walker, 2013). Cardiovascular disease has a vast array of issues related to it as well as many risk factors; nevertheless, with positive behavioral changes many of these risk factors can be reduced, thus creating physiological changes. The…

Analysis of the Molecular Basis of Wolman Disease Wolman disease is an autosomal recessive condition that is characterized as the complete deficiency of the lysosomal enzyme, lysosomal acid lipase (LAL).1 LAL is responsible for hydrolyzing triglycerides and cholesterol esters in the body that have been internalized via receptor mediated endocytosis.2,3 Therefore this enzyme functions inside the lysosome to carry out hydrolysis of lipids. Wolman disease is contracted by an estimated 1 out of 350…

First of all, in order to receive a new heart, patients have to register on a waiting list. The waiting list for hearts may take up to 1.3 years on average, because out of all the people who die, less than 1% of them are potential donors. In other words, less than 1% of the people who die are brain dead. A person who is brain dead means he/she has an irreversible damage in the brain, causing the brain to lose its functions. There are two definitions of death in Australia. One of them refers to…

African Americans have among the highest rates of hypertension (consistent elevation of systemic arterial blood pressure) in comparison to other nationalities. Many factors have contributed to this epidemic, including geographical location, lifestyle and dietary habits, and even genetic components. Morbidity and mortality rates are greatly affected by compliance and management in African Americans battling hypertension and related cardiovascular diseases. This literature review will explore the…

In the article “Impact of pharmacist care in the management of cardiovascular disease risk factors: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized trials,” Santschi, Chiolero, Burnand, Colosimo, and Paradis introduced the article stating that “cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of mortality and morbidity in adults worldwide and it accounts for approximately one-third of mortality in Canada and in the United States” (p. 1441). In the article “Improving Blood Pressure Control Through…

4a. What are health lifestyles? Why are they so important for policy and health promotion? Hint: there is a reason these (they are usually listed as a group of 7 or so) things are the number 1 targets for most health and wellness campaigns. Health lifestyles are aspects of health that can be managed in order to live a longer, higher quality life with less illness. The American Heart Association lists “Seven small steps to big changes,” or “Life’s Simple 7” (http://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/Condi…

Stress is perceived as something negative, sometimes produced by the demand of work or school. Stress is the physical or psychological reaction to a change or challenge in one’s life. There are two types of stress: Eustress and Distress. Eustress is the positive kind of stress, like that connected with getting married or buying a home. Distress is the complete opposite, like filing for divorce or unemployment. A stressful life can contribute to the development of cancer, heart attacks, and…