Course Description
The heart is an incredible organ. It beats over 80 thousand times each day, over 2 billion times by the time we reach 65 years old. Very few mechanical equipment is as durable as the heart. But just like everything else, the structures in the heart start deteriorating as we age. Heart disease is a general term that includes many types of medical problems involving the heart. The term usually used by clinicians for this group of disease is cardiovascular disease. All adults, especially the elderly, should be evaluated for cardiovascular disease. Hypertension is one of the most common heart diseases of our population. Prevalence of hypertension among the elderly is obvious to many clinicians. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that about half of adults in the US have hypertension. Another data says that heart disease is a leading cause of death in the US. In 2023, over 900,00 people died from heart disease. One out of three deaths is caused by heart disease. Every year there are over 800,000 heart attacks in the US, that is one every 40 seconds. The cost of treating heart disease was estimated at over $400 billion in 2020. All these numbers are staggering. It is therefore beneficial for caregivers to educate our patients about their risks and consider how they can maintain a healthy heart.
Learning Objectives
- Recognize the prevalence of heart disease in the elderly.
- Review the basic physiology of the cardiovascular system.
- Learn what influences blood pressure and heart rate.
- Learn the changes in the structures of the heart and vascular system as the person ages.
- List common cardiovascular disease.
- List common diagnostic tools used to assess the patient’s cardiovascular health.
- List healthy living tips to help minimize cardiovascular disease.