CARDIAC CARE

Cardiovascular problems like heart attack are Malaysia's number one cause of death. What is worrisome is that many develop cardiovascular problems at a young age. However, many cardiovascular problems remain undetected till it worsens into something more severe, like a heart attack.

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Take an example of high blood pressure, one of the causes of cardiac health issues. Studies show that 30% of Malaysians live with hypertension. However, barely one-third are controlling their hypertension.

Similarly, about 34% of Malaysians have high cholesterol, yet most do not know about it, and thus they fail to take measures to control it. As a result, high cholesterol slowly causes damage to blood vessels, ultimately leading to diseases such as ischemic heart disease or stroke.

Here it is vital to understand that even stroke is a kind of cardiovascular ailment. Thus, cardiac care would help prevent not only heart attack but also stroke. Moreover, cardiac care is not just about prolonging life. It is also about preventing significant disability caused by cardiovascular ailments.

 

Common cardiovascular diseases

Cardiovascular disease is an umbrella term that describes all the conditions affecting the heart and blood vessels. Adequate functioning of the cardiovascular system is essential for survival.

Fortunately, the system is quite robust, and most cardiovascular disorders develop slowly over the period of years. Unfortunately, many of these conditions remain undetected in their early stages, as they do not produce many symptoms.

Therefore, it is essential to understand the whole spectrum of cardiovascular issues that may affect an individual. Additionally, it is important to realise that regular screening for these conditions is the only way to prevent or reverse them in their early stages.

Some of the common cardiovascular issues affecting people are:

  • Heart failure
  • Heart attack
  • Stroke
  • Arrhythmias or abnormal cardiac rhythm
  • Coronary heart disease or blockage of various blood vessels supplying blood to the heart muscles
  • Congenital heart defects – people are born with these defects, but sometimes they remain undetected till adulthood
  • Peripheral vascular disease
  • Rheumatic heart disease

 

Signs and symptoms of an unhealthy heart

The human heart is quite a robust organ. Early signs of an unhealthy heart are often mild. Symptoms like severe pain in the area of the heart are usually signs of more severe ailment or late-stage disease.

In the early stages, people may have issues like palpitation, headaches, unexplained fatigue, and even prolonged cough due to pulmonary congestion.

 

Below are some of the common signs of heart disease:

  • Pain in the left side of the chest, or even pain in the upper left arm
  • Swollen lower legs and feet
  • Shortness of breath
  • Chronic fatigue
  • Snoring and sleeping problems
  • Unexplained and chronic cough
  • Irregular heartbeats
  • Sexual dysfunction
  • Sore gums and jaw

 

Risk factors for cardiovascular ailments:

As already said that heart issues develop slowly over the period of years. There are some well-known risk factors, and understanding them may help prevent cardiovascular disorders. Some of the most common risk factors for cardiovascular issues are:

  • High blood pressure or hypertension
  • High cholesterol level
  • Obesity
  • Diabetes
  • Smoking and excessive alcohol consumption
  • Family history of heart diseases
  • Ethnicity, like South Asians, are more likely to die from heart disease than other ethnicities
  • Sedentary lifestyle and unhealthy diet

 

Ways to prevent cardiovascular diseases:

Some factors like genetics, ageing, and ethnicity are unmodifiable risk factors. However, most risk factors are indeed modifiable. Moreover, specific measures, when taken in a timely fashion, may even help prevent heart disease in those living with non-modifiable risk factors.

  • Regular health check-ups like screening for high cholesterol, blood pressure, and diabetes may help prevent heart issues even in high-risk individuals. Some people are genetically prone to develop high cholesterol or hypertension. However, if diagnosed early, one can stay healthy with the help of certain medications and lifestyle measures.
  • Dietary measures like reducing calorie intake, eating healthy fats (e.g., seafood instead of vegetable oils), and increasing dietary fibre intake. Additionally, preventing deficiencies of specific vitamins like vitamin D, E, and other micronutrients may also help.
  • Limiting intake of salt and highly processed sugars.
  • Stress management.
  • Improving sleep quality.
  • Quit smoking.
  • Engage in regular exercise.
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When it comes to screening, high-risk individuals should have complete check-ups after the age of 30. After that, one may undergo extensive screening every few years. Those older than 40 years may get checked for blood pressure, diabetes, and cholesterol every year.

In high-risk individuals, doctors may recommend many other tests that are out of the scope of this discussion. For example, some heart conditions are only elicited during stress tests like treadmill tests.

Hence, if you want to have a healthy heart, you should seek medical help before anything untoward occurs. Therefore, periodic cardiac health assessment and proper treatment of the underlying issues are key to a healthy heart.

Speak to our doctors today to set you on the right path in optimizing your cardiac health.

What our customers are saying about us

dia mohamed
dia mohamed
2024-03-01
This clinic got 5 stars and it is really 5 stars, I have done full medical check up. 1st time when I arrived there was a very good welcoming with water and offering coffee, I met Dr Jasvinderpal, he give a good time to explain about the background and what I feel, then start to ask me questions then he started to explain everything in detail in a very clear way, after that he give me the best options to go through for the best for me and I'm so happy and satisfied and actually I'm glad to meet him and glad find this great place. Highly recommend place, and highly recommend Dr. Jasvinderpal. No one asked me to write this review, I just do it as a small appreciation for the good quality of clinic and amazing Doctor Jasvinderpal:)
pradeepkumar ravikumar
pradeepkumar ravikumar
2024-02-09
Got good assistance and really nice ambiences. Faculties are really carrying overall I am satisfied with the medication and procedure
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ShaffNFX
2023-12-28
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2023-12-28
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Janeen Chan
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2023-12-23
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Niel
Niel
2023-12-22
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Yee Chung Yuan
2023-12-20
The doctor know what he is doing
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Syahmi Azri Md Zanil
2023-12-19
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