Cardiovascular/Heart Flashcards
Aortic aneurysm
diagnosis of enlarged aorta; due to a weakened aortic wall
Aortic dissection
diagnosis in which the arterial wall splits apart
Arrhythmia
Disturbance of rhythm in the heartbeat
Aortic rupture
Diagnosis in which the arterial wall breaks open as could happen in aortic dissection, ruptured aortic aneurysm trauma
Atrial fibrillation
Irregular beating of the atria; indicates that the sinus node is not conducting a normal sinus rhythm; “a fib”
Atrial flutter
Irregular beating of the atria; often described as “a-flutter with 2 to 1 block or 3 to 1 block”
Atrial septal defect
ASD; a hole in the atrial septum that causes blood in the RA and LA to mix
Bradycardia
Slow heart rate (HR < 60)
Cardiac ischemia
Decreased blood flow through the coronary vessels and to the heart; usually diagnosed by ST segment depressions on EKG
Cardiomegaly
Enlarged heart
Cardiomyopathy
Disease of the heart muscle
Dilated cardiomyopathy
Dysfunctional heart muscle because of an enlarged heart
Extra systoles
Extra beats of the heart heard during auscultation
Friction rub
Described as grating, scratching sound of the heart indicative of pericarditis
Gallop
Three or four sounds, resembling the sounds of gallop
Irregularly irregular
Heart rhythm for anyone with atrial fibrillation
Jugular vein distention
JVD, sign of congestive heart failure
Murmur
Abnormal heart sound rated on 1-6 scale
Myocardial infarction
Death of cardiac muscle due to prolonged ischemia when blood flow through the coronary artery is obstructed
Myocarditis
Inflammation of the heart muscle
NSTEMI
Non ST elevation MI; a heart attack that is not diagnosed on the EKG but is diagnosed by an elevated troponin on blood test
Pericardial tamponade
Diagnosis due to fluid in the pericardium evidence on physical exam by the presence of a friction rub on heart auscultation
Pericarditis
Inflammation of the pericardium evidenced on physical exam by the presence of a friction rub on heart auscultation
Pulse exam
Carotid, brachial, radial, femoral, popliteal, dorsal pedis (DP) or posterior tibia (PT)
STEMI
ST elevation myocardial infarction; when the EKG shows “ST segment elevation” it indicates an acute heart attack
Tachycardia
Fast heart rate (HR > 100 BPM)
Ventricular fibrillation
Irregular beating of the ventricles; this is a terminal even that requires immediate cardioversion
Valvular vegetation
An infectious growth on the cardiac valves
Ventricular septal defect “A VSD”
A hole in the ventricular septum that cause blood to mix between the RV and LV
Ventricular wall thrombus
A blood clot that attaches to he inside wall of the ventricle; pieces of the thrombus can break off and spread to anywhere in the body leading to infarctions.
