CVD

Cardiovascular Disease Risk



Cardiovascular Disease Risk

Introduction

Everybody knows that how important is the heart of a person, so it is no wonder that people worry when they hear someone has heart problems. Heart disease, also known as cardiovascular disease, mainly affects older people and involves problems with the heart and blood vessels. Cardiovascular disease affects 61 million citizens in United Kingdom. This disease includes a variety of problems, including high-blood pressure, hardening of the arteries, chest pain, heart attacks and strokes (Pearson et al. 2003: 499).

The following essay is based on a case of Fred Jones, who is a White British 49 year old, overweight married man who smokes 10 cigarettes a day. He works as a cleaner for a large retail store and has recently been found to have Hypertension - Average of last 3 BP readings of 156 / 92 mmHg, Total Cholesterol 6.1mmols/l (Triglycerides 1.7 LDL 3.3 HDL 1.1), BMI of 28. The essay is aimed to study that what more information is required to complete the assessment of CVD risk of Jones, and what measures can be taken to minimize the risk or to improve his condition.

Discussion

Information needed to Assess the CVD Risk in Fred Jones

The following information is required to complete the assessment of Fred Jones and to identify any risk involved in his health:

It should be noted that symptoms are important factors and help to identify any risk involved in a patient as discussed below (Wong et al. 2005: 155):

Many people do not realize they suffer from cardiovascular disease until they have chest pain, heart attack or stroke. These types of problems often require immediate attention and the person needs to go to the emergency room of a hospital. If this is not an emergency and the doctor suspects the person could have cardiovascular disease, tests can be done to determine how their hearts and blood vessels are working (Wong et al. 2005: 156).

The underlying disease of blood vessels often produces no symptoms, and its first manifestation can be a heart attack or stroke.

The symptoms of a heart attack include pain or discomfort in the chest, arms, left shoulder, jaw or back. There may also be difficulty breathing, nausea or vomiting, dizziness or fainting, cold sweats and pallor.

Shortness of breath, nausea and vomiting and pain in the jaw or back are more common in women.

The most common symptom of a stroke is sudden, usually unilateral, muscle strength in the arms, legs or face. Other symptoms include sudden onset unilateral numbness in the face, arms or legs, confusion, trouble speaking or understanding speech; vision problems in one or both eyes, trouble walking, dizziness, loss of balance or coordination, severe headache of unknown cause, and weakness or loss of consciousness (Chobanian et al. 2003: 2560).

If Jones is experiencing these symptoms, he should seek immediate medical attention.

If more than one symptom is present in Jones, then he should see the doctor as soon as possible since the symptoms could lead to serious health issues ...