Heart and Vascular Problems

Heart failure is a long-term progressive heart disease that tends to get gradually worse over time. It can occur at any age but is most common in with the elderly. The pumping function of the heart is reduced, therefore not enough blood, oxygen and nutrients can reach organs and parts of the body. The most common signs are breathing difficulties, tiredness and listlessness, increased swelling (oedema) especially on the legs and ankles, chest pain or tightness, cold feeling in the limbs, coughing, weight gain, severe exhaustion, frequent nocturnal urination, dizziness and concentration problems.

The cause of a circulatory disorder is usually deposition in the vessels, furthermore, injuries as well as inflammatory diseases, vascular blockages are the reason for this disease.  If the blood can no longer flow sufficiently through the limbs (arms, hands, legs, feet) that are farthest from the body, nutrients and oxygen also can’t reach the cells. This is often indicated by the fact that the affected areas feel cold. Paleness and numbness, tingling or pain (especially when being stressed) can also occur.

Cholesterol is a fatty substance that is found in the blood and naturally produced in the liver. Only a small part of the cholesterol is absorbed with food. Too much Cholesterol is deposited in the blood vessels and stored in the walls of the arteries, leading to a thickening of the vessel wall so that the elasticity of the vessels is reduced, and also narrowing of the vessels (arteriosclerosis). This causes reduced blood flow in the affected vessels and leads to circulatory disorders that exhibit symptoms such as chest pain or discomfort, heart attack, stroke, pain while walking caused by the blocked vessels, tiredness.

Blood pressure is the force that a person’s blood exerts against the walls of their blood vessels. The more blood your heart pumps and the narrower your arteries, the higher your blood pressure (Hypertension). Currently, blood pressure values up to 139/89 mmHg are considered normal or high normal, while 120/80 mmHg are classified as optimal. Often, with no warning signs at first and developing insidiously, hypertension damages organs after a short time, because the small blood vessels are particularly affected. Later on, general symptoms may occur at first, such as dizziness, headaches, palpitations, shortness of breath on exertion, nervousness and sometimes even sleep disturbances.

Low blood pressure (hypotension) does not lead to serious vascular and organ damage such as a stroke or heart attack, in contrast to high blood pressure, it actually spares the vessels, the heart and the entire circulation.

The blood pressure should ideally be below 120/ 80 mmHg. If the systolic value (the top value) is below 110 (men) or 100 (women) and the diastolic value (bottom value) below 60, the World Health Organization (WHO) speaks of hypotension. Depending on the person, either feeling nothing, uncomfortable or quite ill, hypotension can lead to the following symptoms: dizziness, stargazing or fatigue, depression.