CardiologyI Flashcards
What are the 10 steps in the NCEP guidelines?
1: fasting lipid profile for all adults >20 q 5 yrs
2: rule out 5 causes of secondary dyslipidemia via other tests
3: Identify CHD risk equivalents
4: Determine the presence of major CHD risk factors
5: Estimate 10 yr risk with framingham pt scores
6: Determine tx goals and appropriate tx based on risk category
7: initiate TLC
8: consider drug therapy
9: identify metabolic syndrome and treat
what are the causes of secondary dyslipidemia and how do you test for them?
DM (fasting glucose), hypothyroidism (TSH), obstructive liver disease (LFT, UA), chronic renal failure (BUN, creatinine), drugs that increase LDL or decrease HDL (progestins, corticosteroids, alcohol, beta blockers, protease inhibitors, anabolic steroid, thiazide diuretics, isotretinoin)
what are the CHD risk equivalents?
DM, peripheral arterial disease, abdominal aortic aneurysm, symptomatic carotid artery disease, multiple risk factors conferring a 10 yr risk for CHD
what are the CHD major risk factors?
ADD 1 RF FOR: current smoking, HTN or on an anti-HTN med, low HDl (60 mg/dL
what is metabolic syndrome and how do you treat it?
includes 3+ of the following: abdominal obesity (waist >40 in men, >35 female), HDL150mg/dL, BP 130/85, glucose >110 mg/dL
tx: weight reduction, increase physical activity, increase unsaturated fats to lower TG and increase HDL, and add pharm measures to lower LDL like statins, niacin, or fibrate
What is the progression of TLC monitoring according to the NCEP guidelines?
1: Begin TLC (up exercise, down saturated fat and cholesterol, consider referral to dietician)
2: 6 wks evaluate LDL response, if not achieved, intensify TLC: reinforce decreasing cholesterol/saturated fats, consider adding plant stanols/sterols, increase fiber, consider referral
3: 6 wks evaluate LDL response, if not achieved consider drug therapy, instensify wt management and physical activity, initiate tx for metabolic syndrome, consider referral
4: 4-6 months monitor adherence to TLC
what is the progression of drug tx monitoring according to the NCEP guidelines?
1: initiate LDL lowering therapy: statin, nicotinic acid, bile acid resin
2: 6 wks check LDL, if not achieved up statin or add BAR or nicotinic acid
3: 6 wks check LDL, if not achieved intensify therapy or refer to lipid specialist, if achieved treat other lipid risk factors
4: 4-6 months monitor response and adherence
What are the “statin benefit groups” according to the ACC/AHA guide lines?
anyone with clinical ASCVD (atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease)
anyone with LDL >190 mg/dL
pts with LDL 70-189 at age 40-75 WITH DM (but WITHOUT ASCVD)
patients with LDL 70-189 WITHOUT DM or ASCVD but with 10 yr risk of >7.5%
If a pt doesn’t fit into one of the statin benefit groups but there is a clinical suspicious they may benefit from a statin, what are other factors that can be used to determine whether or not they should go on a statin?
LDL >160, genetic hyperlipidemia, CVD in a 1st degree male 2 mg/dL), ankle-brachial index
According to ACC/AHA when are high intensity statins used (reducing LDL by >50%)? what are 2 examples?
secondary prevention in adults 190, primary prevention in adults or adults (moderate an option for these, but not for this with DM) with DM ages 40-75 with LDL 70-189 and 10 yr risk of ASCVD 7.5%+
examples: atorvastatin 80mg daily, rosuvastatin 20-40 mg daily
According to ACC/AHA when are moderate intensity statins used (reducing LDL by 30-50%)? what are some examples?
for secondary prevention in adults
According to ACC/AHA when are low intensity statins used (reducing LDL by
for pts who cannot tolerate high or moderate dose statins. examples: fluvastatin 20-40 mg daily, lovastatin 20 mg daily
when are nonstatins recommended according to the ACC/AHA guidelines?
for those who cannot tolerate statin dose or have no response to statins and are at high risk i.e. LDL >190, DM, or clinical ASCVD, for those with high TGs, i.e. >500
Also think about if there is another reason they aren’t responding
don’t add statins to nonstatins, nonstatins may inhibit the effects of statins
what are the TLC recommended by NCEP and ACC/AHA/
heart healthy diet: Mediterranean diet
EAT: vegetables, fruits, whole grains, low fait dairy, poultry, fish, beans, non tropical vegetable oils, nuts,
LIMIT: red meat, sweets and sugary drinks, saturated and trans fats, sodium (
what are the guidelines on monitoring statins according to ACC/AHA?
lipids at baseline, 4-12 wks after, then q 3-12 months; ALT at baseline and again if sx of hepatotoxicity occur; pre existing muscle sx, baseline CRK if risk of myopathy, CRK prn if myopathy, check adherence, consider statin reduction if two LDL measurements
what are the known causes of HTN?
known causes: sleep apnea, drug induced causes, CKD, primary aldosteronism, renovascular disease, chronic steroid therapy and cushing’s syndrome, pheochromocytoma, coarctation of the aorta, thyroid or parathyroid disease; meds that may increase it: NSAIDS, cox2, cocaine/amphetamines, sympathomimetics (decongestants, anorexiants), oral contraceptives, certain dietary supplements (ma haung, bitter oragne, guarana), corticosteroids, cyclosporine (anti rejection), erythopoietin, licorice
what are the things that HTN can cause?
major cardiovascular events 12x higher in those with HTN, MI, stroke, PE, HF, PVD, aortic dissection, afib, end stage kidney disease; target organ damage: left ventricular hypertrophy, angina or prior MI, prior coronary revascularization, HF, stroke or TIA, nephropathy, peripheral arterial disease, retinopathy
what is the equation for BP?
BP=CO X PVR
what are the natural medicines for HTN treatment?
none are considered safe or effective
What kinds of drugs are recommended for the treatment of HTN in nonblacks, blacks, and those with CKD?
TX recommended for general, nonblack, including those with DM: thiazide diuretic, CCB, ACEI, ARB; general blak , including those with DM: thiazide diuretic or CCB; age >18 with CKD: ACEI or ARB (renoprotective)
what are the three strategies for dosing antihypertensive drugs?
1) start one drug, titrate to maximum dose then add a 2nd one 2) start one drug and then add a second drug before achieving maximum dose of the initial drug 3) begin with 2 drugs at the same time, either separate or in single pill
how should HTN be monitored?
4 wks: If goal BP not reached, increase dose or add second drug (thiazide, CCB, ACEI, or ARB), continue to assess and adjust tx until goal BP reached, if cannot be reached with 2 drugs add and titrate a 3rd drug (don’t use ACEI and ARB together though) If more than 3 needed, refer to a hypertension specialist
What percentage of pts stop their anti HTN meds within 6 months
25%
What are some interventions that can improve adherence in anti HTN meds?
identify problems with drug tolerance early and switch, address increased urination with diuretics: start with low doses and advise pts to limit salt to decrease urination and don’t take the med at hs, use generics to decrease cost, educate the pt on the importance of controlling BP, spread out meds: 1 in AM, 1 in PM
what are some causes of resistant HTN?
improper BP measurement, volume overload (excess sodium intake, kidney disease and volume retention, inadequate diuretic tx), medication (non adherence, inadequate doses, drug intx), assoc conditions (obesity, excess alcohol intake, secondary HTN)
at which point is HTN considered an urgency or emergency?
when DBP >130 +TOD=emergency; when DBP>130 but no TOD=urgency
how should a HTN emergency be managed? how to manage urgency?
emergency: IV drug therapy like nitroglycerin (vasodilators) to reduce DBP to 110 within 30 minutes (gradually) then to 100 within 12-24 hours ; urgency reduce DBP to 100 within 24 hours via oral agents
what are some of the comorbidities associate with HTN?
diabetes, CAD, left ventricular hypertrophy, ischemic stroke, chronic kidney disease, peripheral artery disease
what are some of the patient related barriers to effective anti HTN tx?
cost, limited access to health care: no one provider for them, non adherence, complicated treatments, no health insurance, knowledge deficits, lack of support, lack of provider to pt education
phases of the cardiac cycle
atrial contraction, isovolumetric contraction, rapid ejection, reduced ejection, isovolumetric relaxation, rapid ventricular filling, reduced ventricular filling
maximum arterial pressure experienced by aorta/aka when ventricles contract
systole
point of lowest arterial pressure aka pressure which ventricle must overcome to open aortic valve aka phase of the cardiac cycle in which the ventricles relax
diastole
when not an urgency/emergency, what is ideal to confirm that someone has HTN?
ambulatory BP monitoring (per the US Preventative Taskforce)
what are the risk factors for HTN?
poor: 56% more likely to have HTN, age: prevalence >60yrs is 65.4%, genetics: FM of premature CVD 1st degree male >55, female >65, african american ethnicity, smoking, excessive EtOH intake, inactivity, renal disease, microalbuminuria , GFR
normal sinus rhythm
60-100; must originate in SA node, activation of myocardium occurs in correct sequence with correct timing and delays
sinus arrythmia
change in sinus discharge rate, irregular. usually in children and young adults due to change in vagal tone, increases with inspiration and decreases with expiration, benign, asymptomatic
what rhythm is this: sinus rhythm >100; physiologic: infants/children, anxiety, exercise, pain; pharmacologic: epi caffeine, nicotine, cocaine, atropine; pathologic: fever, hypoxia, anemia, pulmonary embolus, hyperthyroidism
sinus tachycardia
sinus rhythm with HR
sinus bradycardia
causes of sinus bradycardia
phyiologic: athleete, sleep, vagal stimualtion; pharmacologic: beta blockers, CCBs, digoxin; pathologic: inferior MI, increased intracrnail pressure, hypothyroidism
SA node stops firing or impulse is blocked from exiting the node; latent/ectopic pacemaker can take over; often a junctional escape beat originating near AV node is seen, may have retrograde P wave, especially if PR interval is very short,this indicated that something else is firing
sinus arrest
sick sinus syndrome
abnormal sinus node functioning causing cardiac insufficiency
common in elderly, usually idiopathic, sx: dizziness, fatigue, palpitations, syncope, pre syncope, periods of atrial tachycardias alternating with sinus pauses and sinus brady cardia, tx reversible causes, pacemaker
tachy-brady syndrome
different morphology of P wave than from SA node (may be one different or many different), extra p waves may or may not produce QRS, can come at regular intervals (bigeminy, trigeminy) usually shorter PR because originating closer to AV node, interval between sinus and ectopic is shorter than between two ectopic beats
premature atrial contractions
what can cause premature atrial contractions and how do you treat them?
causes: stress, fatigue, alcohol, nicotine, caffeine, sympathomimetics, chronic lung disease, usually benign; treat underlyng cause
regular rhythm, rapid rate (140-250), p waves with uniform morphology and PR interval but different morphology than p wave from SA node, may be buried in QRS; narrow QRs (
supraventricular tachycardia
what causes supraventricular tachycardia
due to reentry of depolarization, not SA node, may originate in atria or near AV node
what causes reentrant rhythms?
problems with transmission on alternate pathway or one pathway going faster than another and the impulse from the faster returns through the slower, not initiation