Medical Terminology Chapter 5 Cardiology Cardiovascular System: Anatomy and Physiology

right-sided congestive

heart failure

the right

ventricle cannot

adequately pump blood.

This causes blood to back

up in the superior and

inferior vena cava,

resulting in jugular venous

distention and peripheral

edema

left-sided congestive

heart failure

the left

ventricle cannot

adequately pump blood.

This causes blood to back

up in the lungs, resulting in

pulmonary edema

Acute coronary

syndrome

A condition that occurs if the flow of

oxygenated blood through a coronary artery

is limited by a clot or atherosclerosis.

• Results in ischemia (blocking of blood

flow) to the heart muscle

Angina pectoris

Chest pain caused by ischemia.

• Involves crushing, squeezing, or pressure-

like pain in the chest that may extend to

the jaw, teeth, neck, back, or left arm.

• Often accompanied by extreme sweating

and a sense of dread.

• Considered a warning sign for impending

heart attack

• angin/o- = strangling

• pector/o- = chest

Myocardial

infarction (MI)

Death of tissue in the myocardium due to

severe lack of oxygen.

• Also known as heart attack.

• Occurs when blood flow in a coronary artery

is blocked by a clot or atherosclerosis.

• May be accompanied by angina, indigestion-

like symptoms, or no symptoms at all.

• my/o- = muscle

• card/o- = heart

• -al = pertaining to

Congestive

heart failure

(CHF)

Inability of the heart to pump sufficient amounts of

blood.

• Caused by coronary artery disease or hypertension.

• Involves cardiac hypertrophy followed by loss of

contractile ability

Cardiomegaly

Enlargement of the heart, usually due to

congestive heart failure.

(See image below)

cardi/o- = heart

-megaly = enlargement

Murmur

An abnormal heart sound that is heard as

blood leaks through a defective valve;

described by volume, when it occurs, and its

sound

Mitral valve

prolapse (MVP)

Structural abnormality in which the leaflets of

the mitral valve do not close tightly; may be

congenital or the result of infection.

• This is a type of murmur

Endocarditis

Infection and inflammation of the endocardium that

lines a heart valve; occurs in patients who have a

structural defect of the valve.

• end/o- = innermost, within

• card/o- = heart

• -itis = infection/inflammation

Cardiomyopathy

Condition of the heart muscle that includes

cardiomegaly and heart failure.

my/o- = muscle

-pathy = disease

Pericarditis

Infection or inflammation of the pericardial sac.

• Involves an increase in the amount of

pericardial fluid.

• Pressure from this fluid may compress the

heart and prevent it from pumping

• peri- = around

Arteriosclerosis

A progressive degenerative disease that

produces narrowed, hardened artery walls.

• Occurs as the arteries become hard and

inflexible with age.

• arteri/o = artery

• scler/o- = hardening

• -osis = abnormal condition

Atherosclerosis

Fatty deposits in the walls of arteries that can

restrict blood flow.

• Is a specific type of arteriosclerosis that

begins with a small tear in the arterial

endothelium.

• Cholesterol builds up in the tear, leading to

formation of an atheromatous plaque.

• Growth of the plaque narrows the arterial

lumen and may eventually block blood flow.

• ather/o- = soft, fatty substance

• scler/o- = hardening

Aneurysm

An area of dilation and weakness in the wall

of an artery.

• Weakened areas balloon with each

heartbeat and can rupture without warning.

• Aneurysm is Greek for widening out

(dilatation)

Coronary artery disease

(CAD)

Arteriosclerosis that occurs in the

coronary arteries.

• May cause angina pectoris.

• With blockage, MI may occur

Hyperlipidemia

Presence of elevated fat levels in the

blood.

• Hypercholesterolemia = high

cholesterol levels

• Hypertriglyceridemia = high

triglyceride levels

Hypertension

(HTN)

Elevated blood pressure of > 120/80 mm Hg.

• Diagnosis requires multiple BP readings.

• tens/o = pressure

Hypotension

Decreased blood pressure of < 90/60 mm Hg.

• Usually caused by loss of blood volume.

• Orthostatic hypotension is a sudden, temporary

decrease in systolic BP upon standing (often feel

dizzy)

Peripheral

artery disease

Arteriosclerosis in the legs; may cause

intermittent calf pain and cyanosis of the toes

and feet

Phlebitis

Infection or inflammation of a vein.

• Causes pain and possible red streak on

skin over the vein.

• Thrombophlebitis involves presence of a

clot.

• phleb/o- = vein

Raynaud disease

Sudden, severe vasoconstriction of arterioles

in the fingers and toes, causing them to turn

white or cyanotic.

• Named after physician Auguste Gabriel

Maurice Raynaud who first described it in

1862

Varicose veins

Condition in which damaged valves in a vein

allow the backflow of blood, causing the vein

to become distended and twisted.

• May lead to pain and heaviness in the legs.

• Often caused by phlebitis, injury, long

periods of sitting or standing, and

pregnancy.

• varic/o- = enlarged, tortuous vein

Protruding varicose veins

are easily injured.

Cardiac Conduction System Overview

When the SA (sinoatrial) node controls heart rate, the

heart is in normal sinus rhythm (NSR)

Systole

is the period when the heart contracts.

Diastole

is the resting period between contractions.

An electrocardiogram (ECG, EKG)

reflects the

electrical activity of the heart

The “waves” you see in the ECG

illustrate the

depolarization

(excitation) and repolarization

(resting) of heart muscle

P wave

= atrial depolarization

QRS complex

= ventricular

depolarization

T wave

is ventricular

repolarization

• (Atrial repolarization occurs

during the QRS complex but is

hidden)

Arrhythmia

Any type of irregular rate or rhythm of the heart.

• a- = without

• rrhythm/o- = rhythm

• -ia = condition

Asystole

Complete absence of a heartbeat; also known as

cardiac arrest.

• a- = away from/without

• -systole = process of contraction

Fibrillation

An arrhythmia in which there is very fast,

uncoordinated quivering of the myocardium.

• fibrill/o- = muscle or nerve fiber

• -ation = process

Flutter

Arrhythmia that involves a very fast but regular

rhythm of the atria or ventricles (up to 250

beats/min)

Tachycardia

Arrhythmia in which there is a fast but regular

rhythm (up to 200 beats/min)

• tachy- = fast

Bradycardia

An arrhythmia in which the heart beats too slowly.

• brady- = slow

Cardiac enzymes

Blood test that measures levels of two

enzymes released when myocardial cells die

Troponin

Blood test that measures levels of two

proteins released when myocardial cells die:

• Troponin I and troponin T are found only in

myocardial cells (you don’t need to know

the types of troponin for our class)

• Levels rise 4‒6 hours after MI and remain

elevated for 1‒2 weeks

Homocysteine

Blood test that measures levels of the amino acid

homocysteine; elevated levels increase the risk of

arteriosclerosis, clots, heart attack, and stroke

C-reactive

protein

Blood test that measures the level of inflammation

in the body; presence of inflammation increases

the risk of clots and myocardial infarction

Lipid profile

Blood test that measures levels of

cholesterol, triglycerides, and lipoproteins

(HDL, LDL, and VLDL).

• FYI: Normal blood cholesterol < 200

mg/dL

• FYI: Normal blood triglycerides < 150

mg/dL

Electrocardiography

(ECG, EKG)

Procedure that records the heart’s electrical

activity

Electrodes are placed on the limbs and

chest Tracings of each pattern are used to

create an electrocardiogram.

• electro- = electricity

• cardi/o = heart

• -graphy = process of recording

Holter monitor

Procedure to document infrequent arrhythmias;

involves use of a portable ECG monitor to

continuously track a patient’s heart rate and

rhythm for 24 hours

Telemetry

Procedure to monitor a patient’s heart rate and

rhythm in the hospital.

• The patient wears electrodes that transmit

ECG tracings to a central monitoring station.

• A nurse at the station watches multiple

patients’ tracings simultaneously.

• tele-/o = distance

• -metry = measuring

Cardiac

exercise stress

test

Procedure to evaluate the heart’s response to

exercise in patients with chest pain, palpitations,

or arrhythmias.

• Patient walks on a treadmill while an ECG is

performed

Cardiac

catheterization

Procedure to study anatomy and pressures in the

heart.

This can include the injection of dye into coronary

arteries to look for narrowing or obstruction.

• A catheter is inserted into the femoral or

brachial vein and threaded to either side of the

heart.

• catheter/o- = catheter

• -ization = process of inserting, or creating

Coronary

artery bypass

graft (CABG)

Procedure to bypass an occluded coronary artery and

restore blood flow to the heart muscle.

• A blood vessel from elsewhere in the body is used

as a graft.

• The graft is sutured to the coronary artery in a way

that allows blood to flow around the blockage

Pacemaker

insertion

Procedure in which an automated device is

implanted to control heart rate and rhythm in a

patient with arrhythmia

Percutaneous

transluminal coronary

angioplasty

Procedure to reconstruct a coronary

artery that is narrowed due to

atherosclerosis.

• A catheter is inserted through the

skin into the femoral artery, then

routed to the occluded coronary

artery.

• Plaque at the site of occlusion can

be compressed by inflation of a

balloon attached to the catheter.

• A mesh stent may instead be

placed to compress the plaque and

widen the lumen

Heart

transplantation

Procedure to remove a severely damaged heart

from a patient with end-stage heart failure and

insert a new heart from a donor who has recently

died.

• Blood and tissue typing are used to prevent

rejection of the transplanted heart.

• When a donor heart is not available, patients

may receive a left-ventricular assist device or an

artificial heart.

• There has been recent success with

transplanting pig hearts into humans

Cardiopulmonary

resuscitation

(CPR)

An emergency lifesaving procedure to

circulate the blood after a person’s heart has

stopped beating

Cardioversion

Procedure to treat arrhythmias; involves

administering an electric shock to restore the

heart to a normal rhythm.

• cardi/o- = heart

• vers/o- = turn

• -ion = action

Often uses an automatic external defibrillator

(AED)

• de- = reversal of

• fibrill/o- = muscle or nerve fiber

• -ator = thing that does or produces

Stent

catheter with an

unexpanded stent is

inserted into the artery.

• The stent is then expanded

to compress the

atheromatous plaque and

increase the flow of

oxygenated blood.

• The stent is left in place as

the catheter is withdrawn.

The stent provides

continuing support to keep

the lumen of the artery open

over time

Angiography

Procedure in which contrast dye is injected

into a blood vessel to outline it on an x-ray;

the resulting image is an angiogram.

• When done in an artery, the procedure is

arteriography and the image is an

arteriogram.

• When done in a vein, the procedure is

venography and the image is a

venogram.

• -graphy = process of recording

Echocardiography

Procedure in which ultra high-frequency

sound waves are bounced off the heart to

create an image called an echocardiogram.

• ech/o- = echo of a sound wave

Pulse rate

One of the four vital signs;

measured by feeling the

patient’s pulse and

counting the number of

beats per minute

Pulse

point

Location where a pulse

can be felt

Auscultation

Use of a stethoscope to listen to the heart

sounds.

• auscult/o- = listen to

• -ation = process

Blood pressure (BP)

reading

One of the four vital signs; measured with a

device called a sphygmomanometer.

• Recorded as two numbers: systolic pressure

over diastolic pressure.

• Measured in millimeters of mercury (mm Hg)

A manual sphygmomanometer

consists of

a thin, inflatable cuff that wraps around the

arm (or leg)

sphygm/o- = pulse

man/o- = frenzy, thing

-meter = instrument used to measure

Aneurysmectomy

Procedure to remove an aneurysm and repair

the artery; may involve insertion of a synthetic

graft

Antiarrhythmics

Treat arrythmias

Anticoagulants

Prevent blood clot formation in patients with

arteriosclerosis, atrial fibrillation, previous

myocardial infarction, or artificial heart

valves

Antihypertensives

Treat hypertension; category includes ACE

inhibitors, beta-blockers, calcium channel

blockers, and diuretics

Aspirin

Prevents heart attack by keeping platelets

from sticking together to form clots

Beta-blockers

Treat angina pectoris and hypertension by

blocking beta receptors, which decreases heart

rate and dilates the arteries

Calcium channel

blockers

Treat angina pectoris and hypertension by

blocking the movement of calcium ions, which

decreases heart rate and blood pressure

Diuretics

Water pills”; decrease blood pressure by

increasing sodium and water excretion in the

urine

Lipid-lowering

drugs

Treat high cholesterol levels; sometimes called

statins

Nitroglycerin

drugs

Treat angina pectoris by dilating the arteries to

decrease blood pressure

Thrombolytics

Used to break apart clots that are blocking

blood flow through an artery

CCU

coronary care unit

CHF

congestive heart failure

CK-MB

creatine kinase

CPR

cardiopulmonary resuscitation

CV

Cardiovascular

DNR

do not resuscitate

ECG

electrocardiogram; electrocardiography

EKG

electrocardiogram; electrocardiography

HDL

high-density lipoprotein

HTN

hypertension

K+

potassium ion

LA

left atrium

LDH

lactate dehydrogenase

LDL

low-density lipoprotein

LV

left ventricle

LVAD

left-ventricular assist device

MI

myocardial infarction

mm Hg

millimeters of mercury

MUGA

multiple-gated acquisition (scan)

(pronounced “MUG-ah”)

MVP

mitral valve prolapse

Na+

sodium ion

NSR

normal sinus rhythm

P

pulse (rate)

PAC

premature atrial contraction

PMI

point of maximum impulse

PTCA

percutaneous transluminal coronary

angioplasty

PVC

premature ventricular contraction

RA

right atrium