Cardiovascular Disease

The Mayo Clinic has a narrated video introduction to the circulatory system. This short clip covers the basics of how the heart and vascular system produce circulation. There is a text transcript of the video to the right of the player.

The Texas Heart Institute , a nonprofit organization involved in cardiovascular disease research, education, and patient care, has a solid explanation of the workings of the circulatory system. This includes a simple but effective illustration that allows users to zoom in for closer looks at the important components of the system. Also check out their overviews of the heart, heartbeats, and the heart's conduction system.

The American Medical Association 's "Atlas of the Body" has diagrams showing key components of the circulatory system. Check here for an arterial diagram and here for a venous one.

The American Heart Association has a glossary of cardiac terms. The definitions included are brief but succinct, and very frequently appended with high quality illustrations. Open an extra tab or window in your browser, and reference this handy resource with any vocabulary questions.

The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute has a good introduction to the circulatory system, centering around its most prominent component—the heart. Aided by quality diagrams and narrated animations, this overview covers the anatomy of the system, the process of contraction, circulation, the heart's electrical system, and heart disease.

PBS 's 2002 special report, "Red Gold," is all about blood. It tells the story of blood donation by tracing the epic journey a blood cell takes during this process: from creation, to the circulatory system, donation, a blood bank, and finally transfusion. There's a history of blood, biographies of important physicians and researchers, and a Q&A with experts.

KidsHealth.org has an overview of the workings of the circulatory system in children: what it is, what it does, and what can go wrong with it. Click the “Related Articles” tab on the right to further explore related topics like “Cholesterol and Your Child” and “If Your Child Has a Heart Defect.”

The Mayo Clinic has a good introduction to cardiovascular disease with the article, "Cardiovascular Disease 101." Splitting the diseases into two categories—diseases of the heart and diseases of the blood vessels—the Mayo Clinic gives brief synopses for the most prominent conditions.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ’s Division of Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention has a gateway to heart disease information such as overviews, facts and statistics, advice on prevention, risks, causes, and symptoms. This is a good place to begin your research.

Health Central is a good supplement to the CDC page. In addition to having authoritative, trustworthy information, this heart disease overview uses a number of excellent diagrams and animations to convey how different diseases afflict the heart. In the navigation bar on the left of the page there are additional resources, such as heart disease videos on topics like medical advances and new treatments.

The National Women's Health Information Center provides an explanation of heart disease and how to prevent it, as well as important information on issues specifically for women, such as how the birth control pill, the birth control patch, and hormone replacement therapy can affect your risk of heart disease.

WomenHeart.org , the online home of the National Coalition for Women with Heart Disease, has the latest heart news and cardiac information (such as conditions, treatments, facts, and stats) as well as advice on keeping fit and healthy. The “Community” section offers support networks, an online community, personal stories from those with heart disease, and an area especially for the friends and family of women suffering with heart disease.

Yale Cardiologist Lawrence Young has a nine-page PDF overview of heart disease in the elderly. This article begins with an introduction to heart disease and a discussion of how the heart ages. It covers individual conditions, giving attention to diagnostic procedures and treatment options, and ends by addressing the different risk factors involved such as smoking, obesity, diabetes, and cholesterol.

KidsHealth.org , a site operated by the Nemour's Foundation, has heart disease information geared toward younger readers. The site is very straightforward and provides pronunciation guides and explanations for cardiovascular terms that may be new for young readers. Written in a simple yet not condescending voice, the article introduces specific conditions, diagnostic procedures, and treatments. 

The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia has a great central portal geared towards children with information on cardiovascular disorders. The main page has a fact sheet with statistics on the incidence and prevalence of heart disease among children. On the left side of the page are links to information on specific diseases, such as congenital heart disease, rheumatic heart disease, and Kawasaki disease.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 's site has statistics on heart disease prevalence, incidence, and more. The links at the top of the page, "Heart Disease Facts," "Online Statistical Resources," and "Heart Disease Statistical Reports," bring you to additional, more thorough sources of statistical information.

The American Heart Association is a nonprofit organization dedicated to reducing disability and death resulting from cardiovascular diseases and stroke. The site has a wealth of information including detailed descriptions of specific diseases and conditions, a portal to the American Stroke Association's site, a list of heart attack and stroke warning signs, an encyclopedia of terms, and considerable information on living a healthy lifestyle.

The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute , a branch of The National Institutes of Heath, is a government organization responsible for a national program of education, diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of diseases relating to the heart, blood vessels, lungs, and blood. In the "Patients and the Public" section of the site there are links to Web sites, articles, and Web applications dealing with specific diseases. The site's resources tend to be slightly less introductory, so this would be the place to go after acquiring an overview from another site. Also check here for information about the NHLBI's programs and events.

ClinicalTrials.gov brings you a comprehensive list of upcoming clinical research trials for different conditions all around the country. To use this site, enter the condition for which you'd like to find trials (in this case heart disease), and the geographic location, and you'll be presented with a running list of trials as well as recruitment details. For a more specific disease, or to filter results geographically, return to the site's home page and change the search term accordingly (for example, "congenital heart failure" or "heart failure, New York.")

The Cleveland Clinic has a guide to understanding vascular disease that gives a brief overview followed by short summaries of all the primary conditions. This is a great place for an introduction to the disease.

WebMD has a quality introduction to vascular disease with specialized information on the most prominent vascular conditions.

The Texas Heart Institute has information on diagnostic procedures geared toward patients. For each of the tests (listed on the left side of the page) you'll find a description of how it works and what you can expect as a patient. In most cases, these descriptions are supplemented with photographs showing either the scanning equipment used or the images produced.

The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute provides an overview of echocardiography, a procedure where sound waves are used to generate an image of the heart displaying any structural or functional abnormalities. The site covers the different types of echocardiography as well as what to expect before, during and after the procedure.

The Cleveland Clinic has information about electrocardiography in its different forms. Using an electrocardiogram (EKG), physicians can monitor the electric activity of the heart and thus obtain a non-invasive view of its beating activity.

MedicineNet has an overview of coronary angiogram, a procedure where the blood vessels are filled with a contrast material (a solution containing iodine for easy x-ray viewing) and the heart is x-rayed to reveal the severity of blockages in the coronary artery. The site discusses how the procedure is performed, what it demonstrates, and includes a glossary of terms.

The American Heart Association has a page with information on the different imaging techniques doctors are using to produce cross-sections of the heart to measure calcium and monitor blood flow. Some of these procedures include Cardiac Computed Tomography (CT), Cardiac Positron Emission Tomography (PET), and Single Photon Emission Computed Tomography (SPECT).

The Cleveland Clinic has overviews of different x-ray procedures. Each procedure is outlined with a definition, how to prepare, what to expect, and what to do after the procedure.

MedlinePlus 's Heart MRI page has a description of how the test is conducted, how a patient can prepare, how it will feel, why it is performed, and more. An MRI is a procedure where an image of the heart is generated through the use of powerful magnets and radio waves.

MedlinePlus describes MRA (magnetic resonance angiography) as an "MRI exam of the blood vessels," meaning a procedure where an image of the blood vessels is generated using magnets and radio waves. The site walks you through how the test is performed, how to prepare, and what abnormal results mean.

The Cleveland Clinic describes how invasive tests require inserting catheters into the blood vessels of the heart and has overviews of the various invasive testing procedures: carotid angiography, cardiac catheterization, electrophysiology study, intravascular ultrasound, and myocardial biopsy.

The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute has an overview of the procedure known as cardiac catheterization. Performed to diagnose and treat certain heart diseases, this procedure involves inserting a long, cylindrical tube into blood vessels in the arm, neck, or groin, and threading it to the heart.

BBC Health Online has descriptions of how different drugs attempt to counteract the effects of heart disease. These drugs include anticoagulants, beta blockers, and diuretics, and aim to achieve any of the following results: improved blow flow through arteries, controlled blood pressure, thinned blood, arterial plaque reduction, and regulated heart rhythm.

The University of Southern California Keck School of Medicine 's "A Patient's Guide to Heart Surgery" contains everything you need to know about heart surgery. It has basic information about how the heart works, types of heart surgeries (including heart transplants, coronary artery bypasses, grafts, heart valve surgery, and non-surgical treatment options), and information on issues relating to before, during, and after your surgery. This is a phenomenal resource—take advantage of it.

Children's Heart Center Children's Heart Center in Seattle, Washington has information about pediatric heart surgery along with details on how to prepare for your child's surgery. There are also write-ups on specific surgical procedures including those undertaken to fix atrial septal defects, ventricular septal defects, atrioventricular septal defects, and tetralogy of Fallot.

The Mayo Clinic has a cardiovascular disease "Risk and Prevention" quiz designed to test your knowledge and determine whether your family is living a healthy, preventative lifestyle.

The American Heart Association is a good place to start when concerned about heart health. In addition to offering suggestions for cardiovascular health improvement, it supplies warning signs and symptoms for several conditions that result from poor heart health. This general Web site can help you identify whether you should be concerned about your own cardiovascular fitness and if so, offers tips on which lifestyle choices to avoid. Register for free and get a heart profile online, find out how your family history might play a role in heart disease, or get involved with one of several organized local activities from the American Heart Association.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention provide statistics on heart disease and general heart conditions within the United States. Click the "Resources" link for additional information, or browse the FAQ site to answer some of your more basic questions and concerns about heart disease. The heart disease prevention section explains how to lower your risk of complications before they happen.

The American Heart Association encourages different types of cardio exercises and includes an online tracking system. This site is tailored to the individual user and provides online methods for cardiovascular health evaluations and a program for tracking progress in cardiovascular fitness goals.

InteliHealth explains how to define and then assess personal fitness levels. Learn how to use metabolic equivalents (METs) to gauge the intensity of your workout, use tables to see the intensity of different types of exercise, and use the site’s tips for increasing METs.

HealthAtoZ , use their Personal Health Center and take the online fitness assessment to get a comprehensive look at how physically fit you really are. Scroll down to the “Interactive Tools” section to find more assessment tools, like a BMI Calculator and a Healthy Weight Calculator.

HealthAtoZ , also included above, has a list of common fitness programs that provide a cardiovascular workout. Choose an exercise program that looks interesting to you and then find out more about what it is, its advantages and disadvantages, how to pursue it, exercise guidelines, and more.

InteliHealth has a fitness portal with a variety of resources to help you learn about fitness and create an exercise program of your own. Here you can determine your fitness level, submit a question to the site’s resident “expert,” and even find exercises you can do at your desk.

iVillage has a wealth of articles on achieving cardiovascular fitness. They range greatly in content, covering pool aerobics, treadmills, inline skating, jumping rope, and dance. This site is geared towards female readers, but has lots of great information for readers of all genders.

The American Council on Exercise is a nonprofit site dedicated to encouraging physical fitness in the United States. This club locater searches for gyms based on location and provides results with addresses and contact information.

Health Club Directory is a directory of gyms and health clubs in the U.S. and Canada. You can search for a gym near you by entering your location and specific amenities or programs that you desire (for example, childcare, pilates, or a sauna).

FamilyDoctor.org , the Web site of the American Academy of Family Physicans, you’ll find "Nutrition and Exercise: Healthy Balance for a Healthy Heart," an article that discusses how your diet can affect your heart. The article highlights quick tips on how to eat healthier.

The Mayo Clinic has five strategies for lowering your risk of heart disease. These include limiting unhealthy fats and cholesterol, choosing low-fat protein sources, and eating more veggies and fruits. Each strategy is explained and elaborated upon.