Acute heart failure is a sudden and severe condition where the heart is unable to pump blood effectively, leading to a rapid buildup of fluid in the lungs, body tissues, or both. This can result in symptoms like severe shortness of breath, leg or abdomen swelling, and a dangerous drop in blood pressure. Unlike chronic heart failure, which develops gradually over time, acute heart failure demands immediate medical attention as it can be life-threatening. This condition can occur as a sudden worsening of chronic heart failure or emerge as a new and unexpected event, often triggered by factors like heart attacks, severe infections, or uncontrolled high blood pressure. Understanding its causes, recognizing the warning signs, and acting swiftly can make a critical difference in outcomes for those affected.

Low blood pressure (BP), or hypotension, can cause symptoms of feeling lightheaded, dizzy, feeling a bit weak, sick, disoriented, and suffering momentary blurred vision. It can cause you to faint. It may also cause no symptoms. It’s diagnosed when a BP machine gives a reading of less than 90/60 mmHg. A healthy BP should be less than 120/80 mmHg. You might have a slightly faster heart rate (the third number on the BP machine) to make up for the low BP, in order to keep blood flowing to your vital organs.

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) means the kidneys are not working to full capacity after damage from either advancing age or a disease process such as diabetes. You have two kidneys, and their function is to filter out waste products from the body via the urine and balance up certain salts like potassium and sodium in your blood. CKD is sometimes referred to as a renal failure and is a long-term condition that usually causes no symptoms in the early stages. It can get worse over time, but it usually progresses slowly over the years, and it’s rare to progress to a stage where the kidneys stop working altogether, which requires dialysis. For this reason, CKD is monitored regularly, and risk factors for further damage are carefully controlled, such as diabetes and high blood pressure.

Chronic heart failure is when the heart is unable to pump enough blood throughout the body, and is a long-term condition that gradually gets worse over months and years. Although it’s called heart failure, it doesn't mean that the heart has failed, but more that it is not working properly and needs some help. It usually occurs because the heart has become too weak or stiff to pump blood effectively, and the heart needs help to boost its function and reduce symptoms. Unfortunately, it's not usually curable, people learn to manage the symptoms and live with it. 

Coronary artery disease (CAD) is a form of coronary heart disease (CHD) and is where blood flow to the heart muscle is slowed down or blocked, reducing the amount of oxygen available for the heart to function normally. The typical cause of CAD happens gradually over many years, where the walls of the heart arteries slowly become ‘clogged up’ with deposits of fatty substances, called atheroma. This process is called atherosclerosis and the atheroma is often known as ‘plaques’. These plaques can build up and cause the vessels to become inflamed and damaged, causing a partial or complete blockage, and conditions like angina, heart attacks and heart failure may follow as a result. CAD develops over a lengthy period of time – usually years or decades – which can mean it takes time before symptoms develop. Some damage can be repaired with lifestyle changes and medication, surgery may be suggested in some cases, but some damage may be permanent. Many factors can cause atherosclerosis including high cholesterol levels, diabetes, obesity, high blood pressure, smoking and drinking too much alcohol.

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the collective name for conditions that affect the heart and blood vessels. It is a leading cause of death in the US. It is caused by a build-up of plaque in the arteries of the heart, as well as arteries delivering blood and oxygen to the brain, kidneys, and eyes. Plaque build-up puts these vessels at increased risk of obstruction as well as increased risk of clots within the blood.

A heart attack, also known as myocardial infarction or coronary thrombosis, happens when a coronary artery (a blood vessel that supplies the heart with blood) that carries oxygen-rich blood to the heart is blocked. If the blood supply is completely blocked, part of the heart muscle may be starved of oxygen, can become damaged and may die. The medical name for a heart attack is an acute myocardial infarction (MI). Although having a heart attack is very serious, the chances of survival are greatly increased if you are able to get to a hospital right away. A heart attack may also refer to a problem with the rhythm of the heart – an arrhythmia – that prevents it beating in synchrony to pump blood around the body effectively. Again, this can lead to a medical emergency. What causes an MI? Certain things can put you at higher risk of an MI. Age is the biggest factor, where our arteries become less elastic as we age, and we get build-up of plaque on the inside of the arteries (a bit like lime scale in a water pipe). Plaque causes less effective flow of blood as the tube is narrower, and a piece of plaque may break off to form a clot, causing a blockage. Other conditions can accelerate this process, including diabetes, high blood pressure, abdominal aortic aneurysm, high cholesterol, obesity, excess alcohol and smoking. Your family history or ethnicity can cause early-age plaque build-up in the arteries.

Cholesterol is a fatty substance that is present in your blood. High cholesterol, also known as hypercholesterolemia, occurs when there are raised levels in your body. Fatty substances build up in your blood mainly as a result of diet and lifestyle choices. Eating unhealthy fatty foods and not exercising enough puts you at risk of developing high cholesterol. If you smoke or drink alcohol or are overweight, your risk increases further. Too much cholesterol can cause a blockage in the blood vessels. There is a link between the increasing blockage of blood vessels and a higher risk of a heart attack or stroke. If someone in your family has high cholesterol, you are more likely to suffer from it. There are no symptoms of high cholesterol. The only way to confirm this is with a blood test.

Cholesterol is a fatty substance that is present in your blood. High cholesterol, also known as hypercholesterolemia, occurs when there are raised levels in your body. Fatty substances build up in your blood mainly due to diet and lifestyle choices. Eating unhealthy fatty foods and not exercising enough puts you at risk of developing high cholesterol. If you smoke or drink alcohol or are overweight, your risk increases further. Too much cholesterol can cause a blockage in the blood vessels. There is a link between the increasing blockage of blood vessels and a higher risk of having a heart attack or a stroke. If someone in your family has high cholesterol, then you are also more likely to suffer from it. There are no symptoms of high cholesterol, the only way to confirm this is with a blood test.

Panic attacks are sudden extreme episodes of anxiety that can happen out of the blue with no clear trigger. They are common, with around 1 in 10 people experiencing them during their life. During a panic attack, your body has gone into "fight or flight" mode, where adrenaline is released into your bloodstream. This causes physical changes where your heart starts racing, and you're breathing fast (hyperventilating).

Peripheral vascular disease (PVD) – also sometimes called peripheral arterial disease - is a disorder of the blood circulation that causes your vessels to become narrow and get blocked, thereby reducing the blood flow to organs. It often affects the lower legs and feet and is quite common. PVD is usually caused by the build-up of fatty deposits inside the walls of arteries and veins but infection and injury can also cause damage.

A stroke happens when blood flow to a part of the brain is cut off. Without blood, brain cells start dying within minutes. This makes the speed of treatment very important, so the most important thing that people can do is recognize the signs of a stroke and call for help quickly. Although strokes can occur at any age – even in the very young – the vast majority of cases are in the elderly. To remember the signs to identity a stroke, think “F-A-S-T”. F stands for face (face droop) A stands for arm (weakness in one or both arms) S stands for speech (trouble in speaking) T stands for time (immediately call the emergency number local to you, such as 911 in the US) Other symptoms of stroke can be sudden confusion, blurred vision in one or both eyes, seeing double, dizziness or loss of balance and coordination, and a severe headache.