Clinical Context: Types of Cardiovascular Disease

With an awareness of cardiovascular anatomy and function, it becomes easier to understand potential sources of cardiovascular disease and malfunction. Abnormalities or dysfunction at various levels may contribute alone or in combination in individual cases:

• Obstruction at any valve
• Insufficiency of any valve
• Failure of the atria to receive blood
• Failure of the atria to push blood (contract)
• Failure of the ventricles to receive blood
• Failure of the ventricles to expel blood
• Failure of the arterial tree to maintain pressure
• Failure of the arterial tree to lower pressure
• Failure of the pericardium to expand with ventricular filling

More to come on these later! Below are some illustrative examples.

Valvular insufficiency/regurgitation

Valvular obstruction/stenosis

Failure of the left ventricle to expel blood

Failure of the pericardium to expand normally during filling