Heart Diseases

Over 50 different heart diseases affect the heart and/or the blood vessel system within it -- the most common is coronary artery disease. Congenital diseases are ones people are born with; other diseases develop over time. Heart diseases can affect arteries, veins, and the heart's electrical system, as well as areas of the heart, such as the chambers, valves, lining, and the heart muscle itself.

 

Heart Diseases: An Introduction

Heart diseases are diseases of the heart and the blood vessel system within the heart. Many people are surprised to learn that there many different heart diseases. In fact, there are over 50 types of heart diseases, the most common being coronary artery disease. This confusion may stem from the fact that coronary artery disease is often referred to simply as "heart disease."
 
Heart diseases fall within the broader category of cardiovascular diseases, which are conditions that not only affect the heart, but also the blood vessel system (arteries, capillaries, and veins) within a person's entire body, such as the brain, arms, legs, and lungs. "Cardio" refers to the heart; "vascular" refers to the blood vessel system.
 
Some people are born with heart diseases (such a disease is known as a congenital heart disease); others develop during a person's lifetime. Because there are so many types of heart diseases, it may be helpful to categorize them based on the areas of the heart or blood vessel system they affect, such as:
 
  • Arteries and veins
  • Electrical system
  • Heart chambers
  • Heart muscle itself
  • Heart valves
  • Heart lining.
     

Heart Diseases in the Arteries or Veins

The arteries and veins are blood vessels attached to the heart. The coronary arteries supply oxygen and nutrient-rich blood to the heart muscle; the coronary veins remove waste products from the heart muscle. Types of heart diseases that affect the coronary arteries and veins include:
 
  • Angina pectoris, or just angina, including:
o Variant angina (also known as Prinzmetal's angina or coronary artery spasm)

Heart Diseases in the Electrical System

The electrical system within the heart is responsible for ensuring that the heart beats correctly so that blood can be transported to the lungs and the rest of the body. To do this, an electrical signal spreads out over the heart muscle through the electrical system. They can cause a fast, slow, or irregular heartbeat, called an arrhythmia.
 
Examples of arrhythmias include:
 
  • Sinus tachycardia
  • Sinus bradycardia
  • Atrial fibrillation
  • Heart block, including first-degree AV block, second-degree AV block, and complete AV block (third-degree heart block)
  • Bundle branch block, including left bundle branch block and right bundle branch block
  • Premature atrial contractions (PAC), also known as premature atrial complexes
  • Atrial flutter
  • Multifocal atrial tachycardia
  • Supraventricular tachycardia (SVT), also known as atrial tachycardia
  • Paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardia (PSVT), also known as paroxysmal atrial tachycardia
  • Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome (WPW)
  • Premature ventricular contractions (PVC), also known as premature ventricular complexes
  • Ventricular tachycardia
  • Ventricular fibrillation
  • Long QT syndrome
  • Brugada syndrome, also known as sudden unexplained nocturnal death syndrome (SUNDS).
     

Heart Diseases Affecting the Heart Chambers

The inside of a normal heart is divided into four chambers:
 
  • The right atrium
  • The left atrium
  • The right ventricle
  • The left ventricle.
     
Types of heart diseases that can affect the heart chambers include:
 
o Diastolic dysfunction
o Systolic dysfunction
  • Cor pulmonale (also known as pulmonary heart disease), which is an enlarged right ventricle.
     

Heart Diseases Within the Heart Muscle

The heart is a muscle about the size of a fist. Its job is to pump blood through a network of blood vessels. These vessels form a loop, which starts at the heart, goes out through your body, and then ends back at the heart again. Heart diseases that can affect the muscle itself include:
 
  • Cardiomyopathy, including:
o Dilated cardiomyopathy
o Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy
o Restrictive cardiomyopathy
  • Myocarditis, which is an inflammation of the heart muscle.
     

Heart Diseases in the Heart Valves

In a healthy heart, there are valves that keep blood flowing in one direction. When they open, they only allow the right amount of blood through, and then they close to keep blood from flowing backward in between beats. Types of heart diseases that can affect the heart valves (valvular heart disease) include:
 

Heart Diseases That Affect the Heart Lining

Cells line the inside of the heart muscle and valves, known as the endocardium. The outside of the heart is surrounded by a thin sac known as the pericardium. Heart diseases that can affect either the endocardium or pericardium include:
 
  • Endocarditis, which is an inflammation of the endocardium. The heart valves are most commonly affected.  
  • Pericarditis (inflammation of the pericardium), including constrictive pericarditis.
     

Congenital Heart Diseases

There are several heart diseases that people are born with. A condition of this nature is known as a congenital heart disease. Congenital heart diseases can affect any part of the heart, including the heart muscle, valves, or blood vessels. Types of congenital heart diseases include:
 
  • Atrial septal defect (ASD)
  • Ventricular septal defect (VSD)
  • Patent ductus arteriosus
  • Pulmonic stenosis
  • Congenital aortic stenosis
  • Coarctation of the aorta
  • Tetralogy of Fallot
  • Tricuspid atresia
  • Pulmonary atresia
  • Patent foramen ovale
  • Truncus arteriosus
  • Ebstein's anomaly of the tricuspid valve
  • Transposition of the great vessels
  • Hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS).
     

Other Types of Heart Diseases

Other types of heart diseases that can affect any part of the heart include:
 
  • A cardiac tumor, which can be either malignant (cancerous) or benign (noncancerous). Myxoma is the most common cardiac tumor.  
  • Sudden cardiac death.  
  • Hypertensive heart disease, which includes a number of complications of high blood pressure (hypertension) seen in the heart, such as heart failure, hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, or ischemic heart disease.
     
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Written by/reviewed by: Arthur Schoenstadt, MD
Last reviewed by: Arthur Schoenstadt, MD