PATIENT EDUCATION

High Cholesterol What is cholesterol? — Cholesterol is a substance that is found in the blood. Everyone has some. It is needed for good health. The problem is, people sometimes have too much cholesterol. Compared with people with normal cholesterol, people with high...

High blood pressure in adults What is high blood pressure? — High blood pressure is a condition that puts you at risk for heart attack, stroke, and kidney disease. It does not usually cause symptoms. But it can be serious. When your doctor or nurse tells you your...

Heart Failure What is heart failure? — Heart failure is a condition in which the heart does not pump well. This causes the heart to lag behind in its job of moving blood throughout the body. As a result, fluid backs up in the body, and the organs in the body do not...

Heart attack What is a heart attack? — A heart attack, also called myocardial infarction, or MI, is what happens when one of the arteries that supply blood to the heart gets blocked. When this happens, the part of the heart that normally gets blood from that artery is...

What is atherosclerosis? — Atherosclerosis is a condition in which fatty deposits called "plaques" build up inside the arteries in the body. (Arteries are the blood vessels that carry blood away from the heart out to the body.) Atherosclerosis is the reason most...

INTRODUCTION —Angina pectoris, or angina for short, is the term used when chest discomfort is thought to be attributable to reduced blood supply to the heart. In patients with angina, chest discomfort is often but not always present. Other associated symptoms of...