Submitted by:

Batol, Mariah Anne.

Dela Cruz, Christopher.

Francisco, Karen.

Francisco, Kathleen.

Gaw, Kim Justin.

Lopez, Ivy Christel A.

Lim, Rochelle.

Manalo, Cien Divine B.

Morido, Nerizza N.

Oropesa, Kevin Troy.

Pacer, Ralph John.

Perez, Marjorie A.

Submitted to:

Ma’am Luz Esther Sison

 An Overview of the Cardiovascular System

Cardiovascular system is one of the most important systems in your body. The cardiovascular
system is made up of your heart, your blood vessels and your blood.

Cardiovascular system manages the blood by moving it from the heart to the other parts of the
body. This blood moves oxygen and nutrients to everywhere your body needs it. On the way
back from the different parts of your body, the blood picks up waste so your body can rid itself
of it.

The Heart

The heart is like the motor of your cardiovascular system. About the size of a fist, the heart is a
muscle that expands and contracts in order to pump blood through it and the entire body via the
blood vessels.

Blood Vessels

Blood vessels are the largest part of your cardiovascular system. Your blood travels to the parts
of your body through your blood vessels. Your blood vessels include arteries, arterioles,
capillaries, venules, and veins.

Each blood vessel has an important role to play. For example, the blood vessels that carry the
blood away from your heart are called arteries and the smaller blood vessels that drain blood
back to the heart are called veins.

Taking Care of Yourself

While the cardiovascular system is a large and complex part of your body, without it you
wouldn’t be able to live. Because of this, it’s important to take care of yourself and your
cardiovascular system.

If you want to take proper care of your cardiovascular system, you need to eat right and exercise
properly. Stick to a diet that’s high in fruits and vegetables and limit your intake of cholesterol
and fats as well as sodium. Doing this will keep the walls of your blood vessels clear and your
cardiovascular system running in tip-top shape.
 RISK FACTORS OF CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE
• Tobacco smoking
• Poor diet and nutrition
• Physical inactivity
• Overweight and obesity
• High blood pressure
• High blood cholesterol
• Diabetes
• High alcohol consumption

1. TOBACCO SMOKING

Of all the risk factors for ill health, tobacco smoking is responsible for the greatest burden on the
health of the majority of the populace.

Tobacco smoking is a major risk factor for:

• coronary heart disease

• stroke
• peripheral vascular disease
• Numerous cancers including cancers of the lung, mouth, esophagus, larynx, kidney,
pancreas, bladder, stomach and cervix and other diseases and conditions.

2. POOR DIET AND NUTRITION

The major causes of death, illness and disability in which diet and nutrition play an important
role include coronary heart disease, stroke, hypertension, atherosclerosis, some forms of cancer,
Type 2 diabetes, osteoporosis, dental caries, gall bladder disease and nutritional anaemias.

Ill health generally cannot be attributed to any one dietary component alone. Diseases associated
with diet are also associated with environmental, behavioural, biological and genetic factors. The
complex relationship between diets and other risk factors and disease make it difficult to assess
the contribution of diet to ill health.

In an optimal diet, the supply of required nutrients is adequate for tissue maintenance, repair and
growth. The vitamins, minerals and proteins required to maintain the human body in good health
can be met only through the intake of a well-balanced, wide variety of food.

3. PHYSICAL INACTIVITY

Low levels of physical activity are a major risk factor for ill health and mortality from all causes.
People who do not do sufficient physical activity have a greater risk of cardiovascular disease,
colon and breast cancers, Type 2 diabetes and osteoporosis. Being physically active improves
mental and musculoskeletal health and reduces other risk factors such as overweight, high blood
pressure and high blood cholesterol.

4. OVERWEIGHT AND OBESITY

People who are overweight, and particularly those who are obese, have higher rates of death and
illness than people of healthy weight, both overall and from a range of specific conditions. These
include cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure, Type 2 diabetes, sleep apnoea, osteoarthritis,
psychological problems and reproductive problems for women.

What is considered overweight?

The body mass index (BMI) is an internationally recognised standard for classifying overweight
and obesity in adults. BMI is calculated by dividing the weight in kilograms by the square of the
height in metres. For people aged 18 years and over, a BMI of 25 or more is considered
overweight, and 30 or more is obese.
For children and adolescents, a separate classification of overweight and obesity based on age
and sex is recommended as height and body composition are continually changing.

Causes of overweight

While many factors may influence an individual's weight, overweight and obesity is due mainly
to an imbalance of energy intake from the diet and energy expenditure through physical activity.
Genetic and environmental factors play a role, but attention to diet and physical activity is
important not only for preventing weight gain, but also for weight loss and subsequent
maintenance.

5. HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE

High blood pressure is a major risk factor for coronary heart disease, stroke, heart failure,
peripheral vascular disease and renal failure. The risk of disease increases as the level of blood
pressure increases. High blood pressure is also associated with other risk factors.

Major causes of high blood pressure

The causes of high blood pressure are both biomedical and lifestyle oriented. Major causes
include overweight, alcohol consumption, physical inactivity, dietary salt intake and nutrition
patterns which involve a low intake of fruit and vegetables and a high intake of saturated fat.

Stress raises blood pressure transiently but in the long term may have indirect effects by
influencing eating, drinking smoking and physical activity patterns. Tobacco smoking increases
the risk of heart attack and stroke threefold in hypertensive individuals.

6. HIGH BLOOD CHOLESTEROL

High blood cholesterol is a major risk factor for coronary heart disease and possibly some types
of stroke. It is one of the main causes of the process by which the blood vessels that supply the
heart and other parts of the body become clogged.

What is high blood cholesterol?

Total blood cholesterol levels above 5.5 mmol/L are an indication of a greatly increased risk of
developing coronary heart disease. Levels above 6.5 mmol/L are considered to indicate
extremely high risk.

Major causes of high blood cholesterol

For most people, saturated fat in the diet is regarded as the main factor that raises blood
cholesterol levels. Cholesterol in foods can also raise blood cholesterol levels, but less than
saturated fat does. Genetic factors can affect blood cholesterol - some people have high
cholesterol levels regardless of their saturated fat and cholesterol dietary intake and are at
increased risk from coronary heart disease.

7. DIABETES

Diabetes mellitus is a major problem that significantly affects the health of Australians. It may
result in a range of complications which can cause disability, and reduce people’s quality of life
and life expectancy. Diabetes is responsible for an enormous public health and social burden, and
is one of the top 10 causes of death in Australia.

8. EXCESSIVE ALCOHOL CONSUMPTION

Excessive alcohol consumption is a major risk factor for morbidity and mortality in Australia. It
was estimated that the harm caused by excessive alcohol consumption accounted for 4.9% of the
total burden of disease in 1996.
Examples of the conditions and incidents contributed to through harmful alcohol consumption
are:

• cirrhosis of the liver

• breast, oral, liver and colorectal cancers
• stroke, inflammatory heart disease and hypertension
• road traffic accidents
• memory lapse
• falls, suicide, and drowning.
 TREATMENT AND PREVENTION
Treatment of chronic occlusive disease is aimed at opening or bypassing the occluded vessel;
however, vessels can also be replaced surgically via several techniques. In the carotid circulation,
atherosclerotic plaques can be directly removed from vessels to reestablish open blood flow via a
procedure called atherectomy, in which a tiny knife inserted into a vessel through a catheter is
used to shave fatty deposits off the vessel wall. Occlusion of the coronary arteries is treated using
coronary artery bypass surgery. This procedure relocates native vessels, such as the saphenous
vein (from the leg) or the internal mammary artery.

DRUG TREATMENT

Drugs used to treat CHD include:

Aspirin – Aspirin helps to lower the risk of a heart attack for those who have
already had one. It also helps to keep arteries open in those who have had a previous
heart bypass or other artery-opening procedure such as coronary angioplasty.

Because of its risks, aspirin is not approved by the Food and Drug Administration
for preventing heart attacks in healthy individuals. It may be harmful for some
persons, especially those with no risk of heart disease. Patients must be assessed
carefully to make sure the benefits of taking aspirin outweigh the risks. Talk to your
doctor about whether taking aspirin is right for you.

Digitalis – makes the heart contract harder and is used when the heart's pumping
function has been weakened; it also slows some fast heart rhythms.

ACE (angiotensin converting enzyme) inhibitor – stops the production of a

chemical that makes blood vessels narrow and is used to help control high blood
pressure and for damaged heart muscle. It may be prescribed after a heart attack to
help the heart pump blood better. It is also used for persons with heart failure, a
condition in which the heart is unable to pump enough blood to supply the body's
needs.

Beta blocker – slows the heart and makes it beat with less contracting force, so
blood pressure drops and the heart works less hard. It is used for high blood
pressure, chest pain, and to prevent a repeat heart attack.

Nitrates (including nitroglycerine) – relaxes blood vessels and stops chest pain.

Calcium channel blocker – relaxes blood vessels and is used for high blood
pressure and chest pain.

Diuretic – decreases fluid in the body and is used for high blood pressure. Diuretics
are sometimes referred to as "water pills."

Blood cholesterol-lowering agents – decrease LDL cholesterol levels in the blood.

Thrombolytic agents–also called "clot busting drugs," they are given during a heart
attack to break up a blood clot in a coronary artery in order to restore blood flow.
SURGICAL TREATMENT

• Heart Transplant: Patient Guide

• Coronary Artery Bypass Graft (CABG)
• Minimally Invasive Direct Coronary Artery Bypass (MIDCAB)
• Heart Valve Surgery
• Angioplasty / Balloon Angioplasty