You can watch your child's behavior to check for hearing loss. If you notice a change, your child might have hearing loss. Also, pay attention to the quality of your child's speech. Children must be able to hear well for normal speech and language to develop. Does your child: Listen to simple stories, songs, or rhymes...
You can watch your child's behavior to check for hearing loss. If you notice a change, your child might have hearing loss. Also, pay attention to the quality of your child's speech. Children must be able to hear well for normal speech and language to develop. Does your child: Follow two requests, such as "Get the ball...
Guides through decision to get hearing aids. Explains the types of hearing aids, how they work, and how they are best used. Covers benefits and risks. Includes an interactive tool to help you make your decision.
Being exposed to loud noises can result in hearing loss . As the loudness of a sound increases, the amount of time you can safely listen to the sound decreases. One way to protect your hearing is to wear hearing protectors, which reduce the loudness of the sound. Hearing protectors are especially important for those who...
A hearing (audiometric) test is part of an ear exam that tests how well a person is able to hear. It is done by measuring how well sound can reach the brain. The sounds we hear start as vibrations in the air around us. The vibrations make sound waves, which vibrate at a certain speed (frequency) and have a certain...
Have a heart—learn everyday changes to minimize your cardiovascular disease risk and help keep your heart healthy and strong. Select a topic: Angina Atherosclerosis Brush Your Teeth for Heart Health Cardiovascular Disease Heart Attack Heart Disease Hibiscus for High Blood Pressure High Blood Pressure High Cholesterol...
Your heart has four separate chambers that pump blood. The chambers are called the right atrium, right ventricle, left atrium, and left ventricle. The right side of your heart receives oxygen-poor blood from your veins (the vena cava) and pumps it to your lungs (through the pulmonary artery), where the blood picks up...
Provides link to info on high cholesterol and cholesterol/triglyceride tests. Also has links to info on coronary artery disease and peripheral arterial disease of the legs, plus tools to decide about treatment options.
If you have an irregular heartbeat ( arrhythmia), it's important to talk to your doctor about what type and level of exercise is safe for you. Regular activity can help keep your heart and body healthy. The type and amount of exercise that's is safe for you will vary depending on the cause of your abnormal heart rhythm...
A heart attack is an event that occurs when part of the heart muscle does not get enough blood and oxygen. This part of the heart starts to die. A heart attack most often happens because blood flow through one or more of the coronary arteries is blocked. This blockage is usually caused by a blood clot that forms when...
Covers causes of heart attack (myocardial infarction, or MI) and unstable angina. Discusses symptoms like chest pain or pressure. Explains MI and angina differences. Offers prevention tips. Covers diagnostic tests and treatment with medicines and surgery.
Keep your lifelines clear and let blood flow freely to your heart. According to research or other evidence, the following self-care steps may be helpful. Trim the unhealthy fat Protect your heart and its blood supply by cutting meat, dairy fats, and foods containing trans fats out of your diet; fuel up with nuts, olive...
Covers risk of heart disease and stroke in women. Lists things that increase risk. Lists prevention steps, such as diet, exercise, not smoking, managing cholesterol and blood pressure, and making decisions on birth control and hormone therapy.
Screening for heart attack and stroke risk is a way for your doctor to check your chance of having a problem called atherosclerosis. This problem is also called hardening of the arteries. It is the starting point for most heart and blood flow problems, such as coronary artery disease, heart attack, stroke, and...
Learn why it's important to know your risks for heart attack and stroke if you're a woman.
See how three women made heart-healthy lifestyle changes to help lower their risk for heart attack and stroke.
Symptoms of a heart attack may include: Chest pain or pressure, or a strange feeling in the chest. Sweating. Shortness of breath. Nausea or vomiting. Pain, pressure, or a strange feeling in the back, neck, jaw, or upper belly, or in one or both shoulders or arms. Lightheadedness or sudden weakness. A fast or irregular...
Learn what a heart attack is.
After you've had a heart attack, you may be worried that you could have another one. That's easy to understand. But the good news is that there are things you can do to reduce your risk of having another heart attack. Take your medicine. Medicines can help prevent another heart attack. Some of the medicines your doctor...
What is heart block? Heart block refers to an abnormality in the way electricity passes through the normal electrical pathways of the heart. The abnormality "blocks" the electrical impulse from continuing through the normal pathways and usually results in a slower heart rate. The electrical activity of the heart starts...
Describes heart failure (congestive heart failure). Discusses common causes like hypertension and coronary artery disease. Has info on symptoms. Covers diagnostic tests and treatments. Discusses heart failure classification system and stages of CHF.
Heart failure means that your heart muscle doesn't pump as much blood as your body needs. In time, this causes fluid to build up in your body, and you have symptoms like swelling in the legs and feeling out of breath and weak. Heart failure usually gets worse over time. But treatment can slow the disease, help you feel...
Heart failure occurs when the heart muscle does not pump as much blood as the body needs. Failure does not mean that the heart has stopped pumping but rather that it is failing to pump as effectively as it should. The body tries to compensate for the heart's reduced pumping ability by: Holding on to (retaining) salt and...
Sex is part of a healthy life and is part of your quality of life. Most people with heart failure can still have an active sex life. You can ask your doctor to help you know if or when it's okay for you to have sex. If you or your partner is worried about having sex, talk with your doctor about your concerns. Your...
Even if you are treating your heart failure successfully, you may develop a complication that can be serious and life-threatening. It is important to identify complications of heart failure as soon as possible, because some can be extremely serious conditions. You can discuss your complications with your doctor and...
A heart failure action plan gives you an easy way to check your symptoms and see changes. The plan also tells you when you need to get help. Your doctor may give you a plan, or you might create one together. You'll use your plan every day. It takes the guesswork out of knowing when symptoms mean you should call your...
The American College of Cardiology and the American Heart Association have devised a classification system for heart failure. It categorizes heart failure based on how the disease progresses in most people. Under this system, heart failure is classified by stages A through D. Stages of heart failure Stage Definition...
If you have heart failure, symptoms start to happen when your heart cannot pump enough blood to the rest of your body. Shortness of breath While shortness of breath is the most common symptom of heart failure, it may be difficult or impossible to distinguish it from shortness of breath caused by other health problems...
Heart failure means that your heart muscle does not pump as much blood as your body needs. Failure doesn't mean that your heart has stopped. It means that your heart is not pumping as well as it should. There is more than one type of heart failure, so you might hear your doctor call it different names. The types are...
Heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) is a type of heart failure. It happens when the heart's lower left chamber (left ventricle) pumps out less blood than the body needs. It's sometimes called diastolic heart failure. This is because your left ventricle is not able to fill properly with blood during...
