Heart diseases

Heart problems at birth:

Some children are born with heart defects. These problems may involve the valves, the vessels leading to and from the heart, or a hole between the pairs of heart chambers.

Coronary artery disease:

Coronary artery disease , the most common heart disease, occurs when LDL, or "bad" cholesterol, builds up plaque in your heart's arteries.

Heart failure:

Your heart is a muscle, and it contracts and relaxes to pump blood continuously to every part of your body. If your heart muscle becomes weak or stiff, your heart valves develop problems, or other health conditions reduce or change your heart's pumping ability, it's called congestive heart failure . Despite the name, having heart failure doesn't mean that your heart is about to stop or has stopped working.

Arrhythmia

Arrhythmia means that your heart beats too fast, too slow, or irregularly.

Valvular heart disease:

There are 4 different valves in the heart, and each of them can develop problems. Sometimes children are born with heart valve problems, but infections can also damage the heart valves over time.

Aortic aneurysms:

The aorta is the large blood vessel that carries blood from the heart to the rest of the body. An aortic aneurysm is when the aorta enlarges or develops a bulge, due to inherited diseases or longstanding high blood pressure or high cholesterol. Aortic aneurysms can burst, and the consequences can be serious.

Heart infections:

Some infections can attack the heart directly. Tuberculosis, viruses, and some other infections can inflame the sac surrounding the heart, causing pericarditis. Some viruses can attack the heart muscle, causing myocarditis, a swelling of the heart muscle that sometimes weakens it. Rarely, bacteria can infect the heart valves, causing endocarditis.