Conditions

Coronary artery disease (CAD) develops when your coronary arteries — the major blood vessels that supply your heart with blood, oxygen and nutrients become damaged or diseased. When plaque builds up in the coronary arteries, the heart receives less blood. Eventually, the decreased blood flow may cause chest pain (angina), shortness of breath, or other coronary artery disease signs and symptoms. A complete blockage can cause a heart attack. Risk factors for CAD include hypertension, diabetes, abnormal cholesterol, cigarette smoking, obesity, family history of CAD, age, and stress.

Heart failure refers to a large number of conditions which affect the structure or function of the heart, making it difficult for the heart to supply sufficient blood flow to meet the body’s needs. It occurs when one or more of the heart’s four chambers lose its ability to maintain proper blood flow. This can happen because the heart can’t fill well enough with blood or because the heart can’t contract strongly enough to propel the blood with enough force to maintain proper circulation. In some people, both filling and contraction problems can occur.

Congenital heart defects are problems with the heart's structure that are present at birth. These defects can involve the interior walls of the heart, valves inside the heart, or the arteries and veins that carry blood to the heart or out to the body. Congenital heart disease was often fatal, but it's far more treatable today. Congenital heart disease can cause problems in children immediately after they are born or during childhood or adolescence. Sometimes it may not be diagnosed until adulthood.

Cholesterol is a fat-like substance that is made in your body. Cholesterol is also in some foods that you eat. Too much cholesterol in the blood is called high blood cholesterol, hypercholesterolemia, or dyslipidemia. Low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol is the "bad" cholesterol; conversely, high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol is the "good" cholesterol. High “bad” cholesterol increases the chance of having a heart attack or stroke. There are no signs or symptoms of high blood cholesterol. Many people don't know that their cholesterol level is too high.

In cardiomyopathy, the heart muscle becomes enlarged or abnormally thick or rigid. There are three main types of cardiomyopathy — dilated, hypertrophic and restrictive. Cardiomyopathy makes it harder for the heart to pump blood and deliver it to the rest of the body and can lead to heart failure. Some people who develop cardiomyopathy have no signs and symptoms during the early stages of the disease.

Broken heart syndrome, also known as takotsubo cardiomyopathy, stress-induced cardiomyopathy or apical ballooning is a temporary heart condition brought on by psychological or physical stressors, such as the death of a loved one, intense arguments, serious infections or following surgeries.

Atrial flutter is similar to atrial fibrillation. Both can occur, coming and going in an alternating fashion. The heartbeats in atrial flutter are more-organized and more-rhythmic electrical impulses than in atrial fibrillation. Generally, treatment strategies are similar to those in atrial fibrillation. Ablation therapy tends to be more successful in patients with atrial flutter.

WebMD: http://www.webmd.com/heart/atrial-flutter

Atrial fibrillation is a common heart rhythm disorder. In atrial fibrillation, the electrical signal in the heart either does not begin where it should or is not conducted properly, leading to a very fast rate and causes the walls of the atria to quiver quickly (fibrillate) and makes them unable to effectively pass blood into the ventricles.  The two most common complications of long-term atrial fibrillation are heart failure and stroke.  Stroke can result from atrial fibrillation because when the atria are fibrillating, clots can form there and could travel to the brain causing a stroke.

An arrhythmia is a problem with the speed or rhythm of the heartbeat. During an arrhythmia, the heart can beat too fast, too slow, or with an irregular rhythm.  An arrhythmia occurs because the heart’s electrical conduction system is not working properly. They can be harmless or life-threatening.  Tests such as EKGs, stress tests and electrophysiologic studies are used to diagnose causes of arrhythmias.

Aortic stenosis occurs when the heart's aortic valve narrows. This narrowing prevents the valve from opening fully, which obstructs blood flow from your heart into your aorta and onward to the rest of your body. When the aortic valve is obstructed, your heart needs to work harder to pump blood to your body. Eventually, this extra work limits the amount of blood it can pump and may lead to symptoms, such as chest pain, shortness of breath, fatigue, dizziness, or fainting (syncope). If you have severe aortic valve stenosis, you will need to have this corrected.