Medical Terminology
Cardiovascular Disease
angi/o: blood vessel
arteri/o: artery
brad/y: slow
cardi/o: heart
cereb/o: brain
cor: heart
cyan/o: blue
gram/o: image
hemangl/o: blood vessels
my/o: muscle
orrhex’s: rupture
phleb/o: vein
scler/o: hard
tach/y: fast
thromb/o: clot
vas/o: blood vessel
varix: swollen vein
vena: vein
xanta/o: yellow
C.V. Diagnostic Terms
> Aneurysm: an abnormal widening of a portion of an artery due to weakness in
the wall of the blood vessel.
> Arteriosclerosis: hardening of the arteries, making them thick and stiff.
> Atheroma: a fatty deposit on the inner most wall of the artery leading to the
obstruction of blood flow.
> Atherosclerosis: build up of fats and cholesterol in the artery walls, which can
restrict blood flow.
> Cardiac arrest: heart develops an arrhythmia (abnormal heart rhythm) that
causes it to stop beating.
> Cardiac cachexia: unintentional, severe weight loss caused by heart disease.
> Cardiomegaly: enlarged heart
> Cerebrovascular accident (CVA)- the sudden death of some brain cells due to
lack of oxygen when the blood flow to the brain is impaired by blockage or
rupture of an artery to the brain (aka stroke). > Congestive heart failure (CHF): heart cannot pump enough blood to the rest of
the body.
> Coronary heart disease (CHD): is a narrowing of the small blood vessels that
supply blood and oxygen to the heart, caused by the build-up of plaque.
> Dyslipidemia: high blood cholesterol.
> Embolism: a sudden interruption of blood flow to an organ or body part due to a
clot.
> Fatty streaks: cholesterol deposits in the walls of arteries. The earliest form of
atherosclerosis.
> Homocysteine: an amino acid found in the blood- Increased levels are thought to
cause heart attacks, vascular disease, and strokes.
> Hypercholesterolemia: a condition characterized by very high levels of
cholesterol in the blood.
> Hyperlipoproteinemia: abnormally elevated levels of lipids in the blood.
> Hypertension (HTN): a condition of chronically elevated blood pressure.
>
>
>
>
>
Ischemia: a decrease in the blood supply to a bodily organ, tissue, or part caused
by constriction or obstruction of the blood vessels.
Myocardial infarction (MI): blood flow to a part of your heart is blocked for a
long enough time that part of the heart muscle is damaged or dies (aka heart
attack).
Myocarditis: an inflammation of the myocardium, the middle layer of the heart.
Plaque: a semi-hardened accumulation of cholesterol.
Thrombus: the formation of a blood clot inside a blood vessel.
C.V. Symptomatic Terms
> Angina syndrome; angina pectoris: chest pain or discomfort that occurs if an
area of your heart muscle doesn't get enough oxygen-rich blood.
> Anoxia: an absence or lack of oxygen in tissues and organs.
> Asystole: a state of no cardiac electrical activity- no contractions of the
myocardium and no cardiac output or blood flow.
> Bradycardia: abnormally slow heart rate.
> Cardiac edema: build up of fluid in the interstitial tissue and cavities of the body
as a result of congestive heart failure.
> Claudication: pain caused by too little blood flow during exercise.
> Ischemia: a decrease in the blood supply to a bodily organ, tissue, or part caused
by constriction or obstruction of the blood vessels.
o Cerebral: reduction or loss of oxygen to the brain.
o Myocardial: deficiency of blood supply to the heart muscle, due to
obstruction or constriction of the coronary arteries.
> Palpitation: abnormality of your heartbeat.
> Systole: contraction phase of the cardiac cycle.
> Tachycardia: too fast of heart rate (more than 100 BPM in adults).
> Vasoconstriction: is the narrowing (constriction) of blood vessels by small
muscles in their walls.
> Vasodepression: Reduction of tone in blood vessels with vasodilation and
resulting in lowered blood pressure.
> Xanthoma: a skin condition in which certain fats build up under the surface of
the skin.
C.V. Chart Abbreviations
CABG: Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting
AHA: American Heart Association
AI: Adequate Intake
ASHD: Atherosclerotic Heart Disease
atr: Atrophy
AV: Arteriovenous
BP: Blood Pressure
brady: Bradycardia
BV: Blood Volume/Blood Vessel
CAD: Coronary Artery Disease
cardio: Cardiovascular
CBC: Complete Blood Count
CCCR: Closed Chest Cardiopulmonary
Resuscitation
CCU: Coronary Care Unit
CHD: Cardiac Heart Disease
CHF: Congestive Heart Failure
Chol: Cholesterol
CP: Chest Pain
CPR: Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation
CVA: Cerebrovascular Accident
ECG, EKG: Electrocardiogram
FFA: Free Fatty Acids
Fib: Fibrillation
HCVD: Hypertensive Cardiovascular
Disease
HTN, HPN: Hypertension
MI: Myocardial Infarction
MS: Mitral Stenosis
MVR: Mitral Valve Replacement
HTG: hypertriglyceridema
OHS: Open Heart Surgery
PA: Pulmonary Artery
PT: Prothrombin Time
RHD: Rheumatic Heart Disease
SOB: Shortness of Breath
tach: tachycardia
TG: Triglycerides
Throm: Clot
vent: Ventricle