The Early Stages of Becoming a Cardiologist If you are reading this article on how to become a cardiologist, you are contemplating on embarking on a long, challenging, and most importantly, fulfilling journey. The path to becoming a cardiologist, believe it or not, begins during undergrad because a career in medicine draws people who are…
Afib with RVR – When The Heart Races Out Of Control
What Is Afib with RVR? Afib with RVR refers to atrial fibrillation with rapid ventricular rate. Usually the heart is like clockwork, the top (collecting) chambers beat then the bottom (main pumping) chambers sense this and also beat, and so on, in a nice regular fashion just like a clock ticking second after second. Usually…
Amlodipine Side Effects – What To Expect
The most likely reason to be started on amlodipine is for blood pressure control. It causes relaxation and dilation of the blood vessels leading to lowering of blood pressure. The other reason people are started on amlodipine is for control of chest pain in people with coronary artery disease, amlodipine is thought to achieve this…
The 35-45 year old health check – (Part III) – The Physical Examination
By Murtaza Ahmed MD So hopefully before reading this you have already read Part I and Part II and understand why it is so important that you have a health check and what kind of things should have been focused on in the history. Only after a good thorough history has been taken should…
The 35-45 Year Old Health Check – (Part 2)- The History
By Murtaza Ahmed MD Many people have come to think that the bulk of a health check consists of blood tests. While blood tests are very important and have their role, they are by no means the be all and end all when it comes to deciding if you are healthy. There are some Physicians…
Stroke – Part 1 – Types of Stroke
By Julian Booker MD Stroke falls under the category of cerebrovascular disease meaning disease involving the blood vessels of the central nervous system (brain, spinal cord and visual system). We all know someone that has had a stroke but many of us do not know what a stroke is. I have heard people refer to…
Understanding Kidney Disease
Chronic kidney disease is a condition where your kidneys have been damaged and do not perform their primary functions at peak capacity. In addition to the aforementioned duties, the kidney’s most well-known function is to help filter the blood of various toxins and excess byproducts of metabolism.
Hypertension
Hypertension, also called high blood pressure, is the condition where one or both of your blood pressure values are elevated. When looking at your blood pressure recording you will notice two numbers. The top and bottom numbers of your blood pressure measurement are called the systolic blood pressure and diastolic blood pressure respectively. For years,…
Diastolic Heart Failure
Diastolic heart failure, is when you have heart failure with a near normal (preserved) ejection fraction. This type of heart failure is related more to the heart’s inability to relax. Diastolic Heart Failure sounds like a really scary thing, but don’t write your will yet. Learn the facts from a world renowned cardiologist.
How often should I have an Echocardiogram?
By Julian Booker MD How often should I have an Echocardiogram? The first thing that must be stated about the echocardiography appropriate use guidelines is that they are just that...guidelines. They are designed to provide direction but still be vague enough to allow flexibility in their interpretation if needed. This flexibility is needed so as…
