Heart disease is an umbrella term for a variety for different diseases affecting the heart. As of 2007, it is the leading cause of death in the United States, England, Canada and Wales, killing one person every 34 seconds in the United States alone.

Coronary heart disease

main: Coronary heart disease

Coronary artery disease is a disease of the artery caused by the accumulation of atheromatous plaques within the walls of the arteries that supply the myocardium. Angina pectoris (chest pain) and myocardial infarction (heart attack) are symptoms of and conditions caused by coronary heart disease.

Over 451,000 Americans die of coronary heart disease every yearAmerican Heart Association:And if they didnt smoke that number would be way way way down!?! Heart Disease and Stroke Statistics-2008 Update. AHA, Dallas, Texas, 2008. In the United Kingdom, 101,000 deaths annually are due to coronary heart disease.

Cardiomyopathy

main: Cardiomyopathy

Cardiomyopathy literally means "heart muscle disease" (Myo= muscle, pathy= disease) It is the deterioration of the function of the myocardium (i.e., the actual heart muscle) for any reason. People with cardiomyopathy are often at risk of arrhythmia and/or sudden cardiac death.

• Extrinsic cardiomyopathies - cardiomyopathies where the primary pathology is outside the myocardium itself. Most cardiomyopathies are extrinsic, because by far the most common cause of a cardiomyopathy is ischemia. The World Health Organization calls these specific cardiomyopathiesFact: date=December 2007:
• Alcoholic cardiomyopathy
• Coronary artery disease
• Congenital heart disease - see below
• Nutritional diseases affecting the heart
• Ischemic (or ischaemic) cardiomyopathy
• Hypertensive cardiomyopathy
• Valvular cardiomyopathy - see also Valvular heart disease]] below
• [[Inflammatory cardiomyopathy - see also Inflammatory heart disease below
• Cardiomyopathy secondary to a systemic metabolic disease
• Intrinsic cardiomyopathies - weakness in the muscle of the heart that is not due to an identifiable external cause.
• Dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) - most common form, and one of the leading indications for heart transplantation. In DCM the heart (especially the left ventricle) is enlarged and the pumping function is diminished.
• Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM or HOCM) - genetic disorder caused by various mutations in genes encoding sarcomeric proteins. In HCM the heart muscle is thickened, which can obstruct blood flow and prevent the heart from functioning properly.
• Arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy (ARVC) - arises from an electrical disturbance of the heart in which heart muscle is replaced by fibrous scar tissue. The right ventricle is generally most affected.
• Restrictive cardiomyopathy (RCM) - least common cardiomyopathy. The walls of the ventricles are stiff, but may not be thickened, and resist the normal filling of the heart with blood. * Noncompaction Cardiomyopathy - the left ventricle wall has failed to properly grow from birth and such has a spongy appearance when viewed during an echocardiogram.