Some of the most common signs of heart health issues include the following:

• Chest pain or discomfort
• Shortness of breath
• Palpitations
• Dizziness
• Swelling in the legs or feet
• Lack of stamina
• Fatigue
• Episodes of fainting

If you see any of the usual signs of heart problems listed above, you should ask your primary care doctor for a referral to a cardiologist. You can also call our cardiology department directly, and they can help you get an appointment.

Catching heart disease earlier makes treatment more effective. It also allows your cardiologist to reduce or prevent any major impact on your health. Our team has several screening tools for early detection of heart disease that provide detailed information on your health, which will allow your cardiologist to form an effective care plan.

When you come to Rush for treatment, you’ll have a team of specialists working together to make sure you’re seeing the right doctors who can guide you through your options. They’ll help you feel confident in your decisions about your care.

There are many lifestyle changes you can make that are good for your heart. The American Heart Association has a checklist called “Life’s Essential 8” that describes eight ways to improve and maintain heart and vascular health, which include the following:

• Eat better
• Be more active
• Quit tobacco
• Get healthy sleep
• Manage weight
• Control cholesterol
• Manage blood sugar
• Manage blood pressure

Our heart disease prevention services and the Rush Center for Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease can help you make these positive lifestyle changes. Our cardiologists will work with you and connect you with behavioral health psychologists, sleep medicine specialists, dietitians, smoking cessation specialists and social workers.

Each patient has different needs when it comes to heart health, so you should ask your doctor how often you need to see a cardiologist. If you are interested in screening for heart conditions, your primary care physician can make recommendations on how often to get tested. You can also call us directly to schedule screenings using the information on our Heart and Vascular Screenings page. We’ll set up an appointment for you to see a cardiologist if the screenings show anything unusual.

If you have been diagnosed with a cardiovascular condition, you may need to see a cardiologist more often. Your cardiologist will discuss follow-up appointments with you. For some conditions and services, like our cardiovascular rehab program, we offer both in-person and virtual options for follow-up appointments.

A heart attack involves a blockage in an artery. This leads to a lack of oxygen and blood supply to the heart muscle, causing heart muscle death. Cardiac arrest is a problem with the heart’s rhythm that causes the heart to stop beating. This can lead to brain injury, damage to the organs or death.

A heart attack can lead to cardiac arrest, which is why it’s very important to visit the emergency room if you’re having chest pain. But cardiac arrest can happen for other reasons, too. Most cardiac arrest happens because of abnormal heart rhythms that don’t allow blood to be pumped to the body. This usually has to be fixed by shocking the heart back into rhythm or using certain medications.

The most common test in cardiology is an electrocardiogram, or ECG. It gives your cardiologist a lot of information about the electrical system of your heart. But there are a few other tests that cardiologists commonly use to look at and image your heart. They can take an ultrasound, called an echocardiogram, that will tell them a lot about your heart muscle and heart valves. They can also do stress tests, like a PET scan, to check your heart’s circulation and see if there are any blockages. CT scans and cardiac MRIs are other tests that can check for blockages and give information on your heart’s structure and function.

If more in-depth testing is needed, as with heart failure patients, cardiologists can use tests that involve catheters. These tests allow them to take pictures of the heart and arteries and measure pressure within the heart.

Congestive heart failure happens when the heart muscle is no longer able to meet the demands of the body. Blood starts to come back to the heart faster than it can be pumped out, causing a backup.

There are two main types of congestive heart failure, and each has different kinds of treatments. One happens when the heart muscle gets weakened, which can happen for many reasons. It could be from a prior heart attack, a viral infection or stress, for example. The other kind happens when the heart muscle isn’t weak but becomes more stiff over time.

High blood pressure puts additional stress on the heart, which can cause the heart muscle to thicken over time. A thick heart muscle is stiffer and more rigid than a normal heart muscle and can lead to congestive heart failure. High blood pressure also stresses the arteries and can speed up the forming of blockages that come from high cholesterol and diabetes.

Cholesterol is a molecule that causes plaque to form and leads to blocked or narrowed arteries, not only within the heart, but also arteries to the brain, legs and feet.

Genetics play a role in almost every aspect of heart disease. But research shows that with lifestyle management, some of the effects that genetics have can be countered. And if your cardiologist feels that genetics are causing a big part in your heart problems, they can provide counseling for you and your family.