meds

Heart disease is a general term that includes many types of heart problems. It's also called cardiovascular disease, which means heart and blood vessel disease.

Heart disease is the leading cause of death in the United States, but there are ways to prevent and manage many types of heart disease.

There are many different types of heart disease. Some you may be born with, called congenital heart disease. Other types develop during your lifetime.

Coronary artery disease (also called coronary heart disease) is the most common type of heart disease. It happens slowly over time when a sticky substance called plaque builds up in the arteries that supply your heart muscle with blood. The plaque narrows or blocks blood flow to the heart muscle and can lead to other heart problems:

• Angina - chest pain from lack of blood flow
• Heart attacks - when part of the heart muscle dies from loss of blood flow
• Heart failure - when your heart can't pump enough blood to meet your body's needs
• Arrhythmia - a problem with the rate or rhythm of your heartbeat

Other types of heart diseases may affect your heart valves or heart muscle (cardiomyopathy).

The causes of heart disease depend on the type of disease. Some possible causes include lifestyle, genetics, infections, medicines, and other diseases.

There are many different factors that can make you more likely to develop heart disease. Some of these factors you can change, but others you cannot.

• Age. Your risk of heart disease goes up as you get older.
• Sex. Some factors may affect heart disease risk differently in women than in men.
• Family history and genetics. A family history of early heart disease raises your risk of heart disease. And research has shown that some genes are linked to a higher risk of certain heart diseases.
• Race/ethnicity. Certain groups have higher risks than others.
• Lifestyle habits. Over time, unhealthy lifestyle habits can raise your risk heart disease:
  • Eating a diet high in saturated fats, refined carbohydrates, and salt.
  • Not getting enough physical activity.
  • Drinking too much alcohol.
  • Smoking and exposure to secondhand smoke.
  • Too much stress.
• Having other medical conditions can raise your risk of heart diseases. These conditions include:
  • High blood pressure.
  • High cholesterol levels.
  • Diabetes.
  • Obesity.
  • Autoimmune and inflammatory diseases.
  • Chronic kidney disease.
  • Metabolic syndrome.

Your symptoms will depend on the type of heart disease you have. You may not have symptoms at first. In some cases, you may not know you have heart disease until you have a complication such as a heart attack.

To find out if you have heart disease, your health care provider will:

• Ask about your medical history, including your symptoms
• Ask about your family health history, including relatives who have had heart disease
• Do a physical exam
• Likely run heart tests and blood tests

In some cases, your provider may refer you to a cardiologist (a doctor who specializes in heart diseases) for tests, diagnosis, and care.

Treatment plans for heart disease depend on the type of heart disease you have, how serious your symptoms are, and what other health conditions you have. Possible treatments may include:

• Heart-healthy lifestyle changes
• Medicines
• Procedures or surgeries
• Cardiac rehabilitation

You may be able to lower your risk of certain heart diseases by making heart-healthy lifestyle changes and managing any other medical conditions you have.

NIH: National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute

HIV stands for human immunodeficiency virus. It harms your immune system by destroying a type of white blood cell that helps your body fight infection.

AIDS is the final stage of infection with HIV. It happens when the body's immune system is badly damaged because of the virus. Not everyone with HIV develops AIDS.

There is no cure for HIV, but there are many medicines to treat both HIV infection and the health problems and infections (called opportunistic infections, or OIs) and that come with it. These other infections are called opportunistic infections (OIs). The medicines allow people with HIV to have long, healthy lives.

IIf you have HIV, you can help yourself by:

• Getting medical care as soon as you find out that you have HIV. You should find a health care provider who has experience in treating HIV.
• Taking your medicines every day.
• Letting your provider know if you get any symptoms or health problems.
• Keeping up with your regular medical and dental care.
• Managing stress and getting support, such as from support groups, therapists, and social service organizations
• Trying to live a healthy lifestyle, including:
• Eating healthy foods.This can give your body the energy it needs to fight HIV and other infections. It can help you manage HIV symptoms and medicine side effects. It may also improve absorption of your HIV medicines.
• Getting regular exercise. This can strengthen your body and immune system. It may also reduce the risk of depression.
• Getting enough sleep. Sleep is important for your physical strength and mental health.
• Not smoking. People with HIV who smoke have a higher risk of developing conditions such as certain cancers and infections. Smoking can also interfere with your medicines.
• Avoiding heavy drinking or taking illegal drugs. They can damage your liver, which means your HIV medicine may not work as well. They can also make it harder for your body to fight infections.
• Protecting yourself from OIs. Talk to your provider about medicines and vaccines that prevent certain OIs. Also be careful to avoid exposure to contaminated food and water.

It is also important to reduce the risk of spreading HIV to other people. You should tell your sex partners that you have HIV and always use latex condoms. If your or your partner is allergic to latex, you can use polyurethane condoms.

Mpox, which used to be called monkeypox, is a rare disease caused by infection with the mpox virus. The mpox virus is in the same family of viruses as the smallpox virus. But mpox is less contagious than smallpox. And its disease causes milder symptoms and is usually not fatal.

In the past, most of the people who got mpox lived in certain parts of central and western Africa, had traveled there, or had been exposed to infected animals imported from there. During the recent outbreak, the disease has been found in people who live in other countries, including the United States.

Mpox spreads in different ways:

• Through close, personal, often skin-to-skin contact with someone who has the virus:
  • Through direct contact with their rash, scabs, or body fluids.
  • By breathing in the virus during prolonged, face-to-face contact.
  • During intimate physical contact such as kissing, cuddling, hugging, massage or sex.
• During pregnancy, from the pregnant person to the baby.
• From touching items (such as clothes, bedding, or towels) that were used by someone who has the virus. The risk of getting mpox this way is low.
• From infected animals:
  • By being scratched or bitten by the animal.
  • By preparing or eating meat or using products from the animal.

Someone who has mpox can spread it from the time their symptoms start until their rash has fully healed, all scabs have fallen off, and a fresh layer of skin has formed. This usually takes 2-4 weeks.

Researchers have found that some people can spread mpox to others from 1 to 4 days before their symptoms appear. It is not known how often this happens.

The symptoms of mpox usually start within 3 weeks from the time you were exposed to the virus. The symptoms may include:

• A rash with sores that can look like pimples or blisters. It could be on the face, inside the mouth, and on other parts of the body, like the hands, feet, chest, genitals, or anus. It goes through different stages, including scabs, before healing. This can take 2-4 weeks.
• Fever.
• Chills.
• Swollen lymph nodes ("swollen glands").
• Exhaustion.
• Headache.
• Muscle aches and backache.
• Respiratory symptoms, such as a sore throat, nasal congestion, or cough.

You may have all or only a few symptoms:

• You may get a rash first, followed by other symptoms
• You may have flu-like symptoms and then develop a rash 1-4 days later
• You may only get a rash

To find out if you have mpox, your provider:

• Will ask about your symptoms and medical history.
• Will look at your rash.
• Will take a sample of tissue from one of the sores so it can be tested for mpox virus.
• May do blood tests to check for mpox virus or for antibodies to the virus. Antibodies are proteins that your immune system makes to fight foreign substances, such as viruses and bacteria.

There are no treatments specifically for mpox, but many people get better on their own.

Since mpox and smallpox are similar, antiviral medicines that protect against smallpox may also help treat mpox. Antiviral medicines may be recommended for people who are more likely to get severely ill, such as patients who have weakened immune systems.

There are steps you can take to help prevent mpox:

• Avoid close, skin-to-skin contact with the mpox rash. So, while a person is sick with mpox:
  • Do not touch their rash or scabs.
  • Do not kiss, hug, cuddle, or have sex with them.
  • Do not share eating utensils or cups with them.
• Do not touch the bedding, towels, or clothing of a person who has mpox.
• Wash your hands often with soap and water or use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer, especially after contact with sick people.
• In Central and West Africa, avoid contact with animals that can spread mpox virus, such as rodents and primates. Also, avoid sick or dead animals, as well as any bedding or other materials they have touched.

If you are sick with mpox it is recommended that you stay home while you are sick, if possible. If you have an active rash or other symptoms, it would be best to stay in a separate room from your family members and pets if you can.

The U.S. government has two vaccines in the U.S. to protect against mpox. One was approved for smallpox and mpox (JYNNEOS), and the other was approved for smallpox (ACAM2000):

• JYNNEOS is the preferred vaccine to protect against mpox. It is a two-dose vaccine.
• ACAM2000 may be an alternative to JYNNEOS. ACAM2000 is a single-dose vaccine. But it has the potential for more side effects and adverse events than JYNNEOS. And it is not recommended for people who are pregnant, are under 12 months old, have severely weakened immune systems, or have certain medical conditions.

The U. S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends vaccination for people who have been exposed to mpox or who are more likely to get mpox.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention