Professor Dr. Khin Maung Aye - Common Heart and Vascular Diseases

Cardiovascular diseases that occur

Cardiovascular disease is a common disease that is increasing day by day when you look at it worldwide. That is why in the United States and Western European countries, many dollars are spent to prevent it and to treat those who have it, and they are working hard to improve it, as a medical committee and the government. Because now, because of what we are doing now, we have seen that life expectancy is increasing. In Japan and the United States, in some places, we have seen many people living to be (100) or (90).”

In other words, if we talk about the heart and blood vessels, the heart is in the womb and continues to do so until death. Similarly, the blood vessels swell when blood comes in and thin when blood goes out. They swell and thin, and this is the process that a person goes through from the womb until death.

That's why, when I went to the United States in 2000 and attended Vascular Health, I saw presentations and discussions from many countries. If you think about it carefully, if you look at all the organs in the body, there is no organ that does not have blood vessels. Even in the bones, there are small blood vessels. That's why the health of blood vessels is very important.

"How can we keep the heart, large arteries, medium arteries, small arteries, and capillaries healthy? How can we prevent them from getting sick? How can we keep them healthy and perform their duties? Vascular Health is a very important goal that many people talk about."

A normal person is basically told to walk, for example, to do exercises. To be healthy. To reduce fat in the blood is also said to be for blood vessel health. Not smoking is also said to be for blood vessel health. Antioxidants are given, they are drunk, it is also for blood vessel health. If you look at many recent diseases, just look at the most common high blood pressure, just look at diabetes, coronary heart disease, many blood vessels are damaged. For example, if you have diabetes, the blood vessels are damaged, and the kidneys are damaged. Why do eyes go blind in diabetes? Because the blood vessels are damaged. Similarly, in high blood pressure, the kidneys are damaged because the blood pressure is too high.

So, I would like to say that everyone needs to know that the health of blood vessels is very serious. Then, as we get older, we lose consciousness in the brain. And people suddenly have a stroke. Or, suddenly, they lose consciousness due to high blood pressure. All of these are caused by a blood vessel bursting. Or, blood vessels becoming clogged, or, if it is, by a lack of blood flow. So, I would like to say that the organs that keep us moving from birth to the time we are born, whether we are sleeping, resting, moving, or not, from the womb to the grave, are the heart and blood vessels.

That's why this matter was not as important as it was at first, but later it became very important. The organs that the heart and blood vessels carry are only healthy if the blood vessels that go to the liver are healthy. For example, the blood vessels that go to the liver are very important. If you transplant a heart, similarly, if you transplant a lung, only good blood vessels can deliver oxygen to the detailed tissues of the body, in other words, to the cells.

The carbon dioxide that is released from these cells is also carried back by the blood vessels. So what I want to say is that once I thought that these were just pipes that carried blood, I realized that the function of these blood vessels is very great. When blood comes in, it swells. When blood goes out, it thins. When you look at the blood vessels of older people, they are very hard. You can see sclerosis. This is what you can see with your eyes. Based on that, a lot of research has been done on animals and people. No matter how much you study it, even down to the most basic level, the molecular level, what is destroying your health one by one, what is keeping you healthy, what is supporting you, what is the molecular level that I mentioned earlier, it is very exciting for me. That is why I think that now, when we talk about the treatment of many diseases everywhere, we used to treat the disease. We used to treat the symptoms. But now, we have been doing it for the past ten years. Because what we just talked about happens at the molecular level, and many researchers have discovered and analyzed what happens there, and we can go there and treat it. We have done that much. We need to have that knowledge. Every vascular doctor, every doctor, I keep saying that every doctor should know about the health of the blood vessels.

In the section on how we can do Vascular Health, I will tell you about the latest research findings on common diseases. Common diseases are the ones we should know first because diseases are not limited to the heart and blood vessels. But I will continue to talk about what diseases are common in Myanmar and what diseases should be prevented next week.

Palpitations​

Palpitation is a disease that many people go to, whether it is a cardiologist or a general practitioner, and they say they have palpitations. Palpitations. When they come to see you with palpitations, they have a lot of responsibilities as a doctor. Is there really a disease that makes your heart palpitate? Is your heart palpitations caused by emotions? There are many parts to it, so if you look at it for the first time, you often say that your heart palpitations are caused by something unpleasant or exciting.

Among the diseases that I see in my patients, palpitation is a problem that almost every doctor will encounter every day. That's why we really understand why we have palpitations. The most important thing is the mind. When you are anxious, you hear something scary, etc. For example, if there is a car accident on the road, it is a natural reaction. So, when you are anxious, you also have palpitations. So we need to know a little about the mind and the body. Another thing is that people who drink a lot of strong coffee, tea, or eat a lot of food often have palpitations. In fact, there are many causes of palpitations. However, the most common cause is an inflammation of the heart muscle and valves, called Carditis, which is caused by Rheumatic Carditis. In such people, palpitations often occur. If the heart rate is (72) without beating, then it can also be palpitations if it is around (90 - 95 - 100). Therefore, people who say that they have Carditis should be examined by a doctor. Another thing is that people with damaged heart valves (Valvular Heart Disease) can also have palpitations. He is right because the blood circulation valves are damaged, so these people have palpitations. (Tachycardia) In medical terms, palpitations are classified as (Tachycardia, supraventricular Tachycardia) etc.

What should be done for these people? We should test their heart. We should listen to it. We should also know what the condition of the singers is. Or if you want to know, we should take an X-ray. We should take an ECG. We should also test with an echocardiogram and see if there is a suspicion of the disease. Another common cause of palpitations is the release of toxins from the thyroid gland in our neck. This is a disease that many people miss. We have searched for diseases and have not found it. The chest is trembling, and if you look at the thyroid, the neck is not as big as you think. You will find that his movements are a little faster. He sweats a little. Sometimes it doesn't come out much. It doesn't come out enough. There is palpitations there. In these people, we need to test for thyroid hormone, or thyroid tumors. This is our palpitations. It is also common to miss it after being given anti-palpitations drugs for years. That's why we always have to be suspicious of the fact that all of us who have a headache might have a tumor in our neck that is producing toxins.

Another thing is that this irregular heartbeat is called Atrial Fibrillation. Whether it's due to aging or valve damage, the heart suddenly starts beating faster. In such people, it can suddenly (Fast Atrial Fibrillation) cause the heart to beat faster. Children with fast heart rates are also seen . Children tend to have faster heart rates than adults. If it's a treatable disease, I'd like to talk about it.

Acute Shortness of Breath

The problem of sudden shortness of breath is something that every family has, especially parents and aunts. As we get older, problems such as high blood pressure, coronary heart disease, and lung damage caused by excessive smoking are more or less common in every family. As children, we want our parents to live longer. However, if we have a basic understanding of what problems adults have, we can save them as soon as possible. First of all, I would like to talk about asthma. Patients with this disease often have recurrent episodes based on the weather or inhaling inappropriate substances. This is common, so if you have shortness of breath and wheezing, you can treat it by diagnosing it as asthma.

A sudden onset of shortness of breath, chest tightness, and other symptoms can be a sign of acute myocardial infarction. If you are diagnosed with this condition and are taking medication, you may have evidence of it. Although I usually use the word sudden, in reality, many people have warning signs.

But it can happen suddenly, like a muscle ache, a cold, etc. It can also happen suddenly and unexpectedly. It is important to know that you should not be too worried or too anxious.

We often do health education to make people aware when they go to the hospital when they are called to the general practitioner or specialist. If the left main artery is blocked, for example, the heart suddenly stops working and they cannot even reach the hospital. Sudden fluid accumulation in the chest can make a person suddenly faint. I have already talked about this issue in detail in the past weeks. Tension pneumothorax is a disease that can be missed if you do not pay attention. People with pneumothorax, the air sacs in the lungs suddenly burst and the air that you breathe fills the chest and when it reaches the lungs, the lungs cannot do its job at all and can cause severe shortness of breath. This problem can be saved by inserting a tube between the ribs and releasing air, causing the lungs to collapse, but if you do not pay attention or do not take the patient to the hospital in time, it can be fatal.

People with damaged valves suddenly lose left heart power and wake up at night while sleeping, get up from bed, go outside, and feel better when they open the window. It is clear that they feel better when they sit down, etc. This indicates that the left heart power is lost. The diseases that cause this are (AorticValve, MitralValve, HypertensiveHeart) etc.

Patients with this disease may develop acute pulmonary edema due to sudden left ventricular failure. It is important to note that if a person is short of breath, sweaty, and cold, this indicates that their body is not receiving enough blood, so they can be transported to a well-equipped hospital as soon as possible and receive immediate medical attention.

People who are tired

Normally, no one feels like going to the doctor. People with knowledge of literature and health, and those who go to the doctor just to check their health, are more than before. However, we Burmese people rarely go to the doctor. We have the habit of going only when it is really necessary.

I see patients who are tired every day. Fatigue, shortness of breath, etc. are the main symptoms of a heart attack. I would like to tell you what you should know. There can be various reasons for fatigue. It is not always due to a heart disease. It is true that people who are tired should be checked for heart disease, but you should know that not all fatigue is heart disease. When I see patients who are tired every day, I often see people who are tired because of lung disease, people with tuberculosis, and people who smoke a lot. Another is the flu, who cannot eat and stay in bed for (3-4) days. I also see people who are tired because they have heart disease. Chronic diseases, such as cancer, people who have been paralyzed and have little activity, suddenly become tired when they walk. The entire body of these patients is damaged by cancer, It is also common to see people who have become dehydrated and feel tired and weak throughout their entire body.