Diseases Of Cardiovascular System Short Answers
Question 1. Coronary vasodilators
Answer:
Coronary Vasodilators
They reduce the mortality in patients with cardiac failure
They are:
- Arteriolar dilators – hydralazine, minoxidil
- They relax arterial smooth muscles thus reducing peripheral vascular resistance and afterload
 
 - Venodilators – nitrates
- They reduce the venous return to the heart
 - This reduces the stretching of the ventricular walls and myocardial oxygen requirements
 
 - Arteriolar and venular dilators – sodium nitro- pride, ACE inhibitors, prazosin, calcium channel blockers
- They reduce both preload and afterload
 
 
Question 2. Four causes of acute left ventricular failure
Answer:
Four Causes Of Acute Left Ventricular Failure
- Left ventricular outflow obstruction
- Systemic hypertension
 - Coarctation of aorta
 - Aortic valvular stenosis
 
 - Left ventricular inflow obstruction
- Mitral stenosis
 
 - Left ventricular volume overload
- Mitral valve prolapsed
 - Mitral regurgitation
 - Aortic regurgitation
 - Ventricular septal defect
 
 - Reduced left ventricular contractility
- Cardiomyopathy
 - Anterior wall myocardial infarction
 
 
Read And Learn More: General Medicine Question and Answers
Question 3. Cyanosis.
Answer: Cyanosis
Definition: Bluish discoloration of skin and mucous membrane is called cyanosis.
Cyanosis Sites Involved:
- Lips a Nail beds
 - Fingertips
 - Ear lobule.
 - The undersurface of the tongue.
 - Malar eminence
 - Creases of palms.
 
Cyanosis Types:
- Peripheral cyanosis.
 - Central cyanosis.
 
Cardiovascular diseases short answers
Question 4. Causes of central cyanosis.
Answer:
Causes Of Central Cyanosis
- Pulmonary causes
- High altitude
 - Pneumonia
 - Pneumothorax
 - COPD
 - Severe acute asthma
 - Respiratory failure.
 
 - Cardiovascular causes.
- Acute pulmonary edema.
 - Cyanotic heart disease.
 
 - Blood disorders.
- Methaemoglobin.
 
 
Question 5. Mid-diastolic murmur.
Answer:
Mid-Diastolic Murmur
Mid-diastolic murmur is a trembling murmur heard at the apex.
- It is a flow murmur.
 
Mid-Diastolic Murmur Causes:
- Dilatation of left ventricle,
 - Functional mitral regurgitation.
 

Question 6. Bradycardia – causes.
Answer:
Sinus Node Dysfunction:
- Myocardial infarction.
 - Hypothermia.
 - Hypothyroidism.
 - Obstructive jaundice.
 - Raised intracranial pressure
 - Typhoid fever
 - Drugs like digoxin, calcium channel blockers, and beta-blockers.
 
Question 7. Tachycardia.
Answer:
Tachycardia
A heart rate of more than 100 per minute due to any cause is called tachycardia.
Tachycardia Causes:
- Physiological
- Exercise
 - Emotion
 - Fear
 - Smoking.
 - Excessive consumption of tea, coffee, etc.
 
 - Pathological.
- Anxiety.
 - Fever
 - Thyrotoxicosis.
 - Anaemia.
 - Heart failure
 - Hypo or hypertension
 - Pheochromocytoma.
 - Drugs – bronchodilators.
 
 
Tachycardia Types:
- Supraventricular tachycardia.
 - Ventricular tachycardia.
 
Heart diseases Q&A
Question 8. Atrial fibrillation.
Answer:
Atrial Fibrillation
Atrial fibrillation is the most common cardiac arrhythmia.
- The atrial rate is more than 350 beats/min.
 
Atrial Fibrillation Causes:
- Coronary artery disease
 - Rheumatic valvular disease
 - Idiopathic
 - Cardiomyopathy
 - Thyro toxicosis.
 - Alcoholism.
 - Congenital heart disease.
 - Pulmonary embolism.
 
Atrial Fibrillation Treatment:
- Treat the cause
 - Anti-arrhythmic drugs,
 - Anti-coagulant.
 - Defibrillation.
 

Question 9. Cardiac arrest.
Answer:
Cardiac Arrest
Definition: It is defined as the sudden complete arrest of heart function.
Cardiac Arrest Causes:
- Ventricular fibrillation
 - Ventricular asystole.
 - Electromechanical dissociation.
 
Cardiac Arrest Clinical Features:
- Absence of pulses.
 - Cold extremities.
 - Loss of consciousness.
 - Cessation of respiration.
 - No heartbeat.
 
Cardiac Arrest Management:
- ABC support.
 
- A – airway.
- Clear mouth and airway.
 - Extend neck and raise chin.
 
 - B-breathing.
- Direct mouth-to-mouth breathing.
 - Indirect mouth-to-mouth breathing.
 
 - C-circulation.
- Cardiac massage.
 
 
Common heart disorders short questions
Question 10. Heart failure.
Answer:
Heart Failure
Heart failure denotes a pathophysiologic state when the heart is not able to maintain its cardiac output to meet the demands of metabolizing tissues.
Heart Failure Types:
- Acute and chronic.
 - Compensated and decompensated
 - Right, left, and biventricular heart failure.
 - Forward and backward heart failure.
 - Systolic and diastolic heart failure.
 - High and low output failure.
 
Question 11. Treatment of cardiac failure.
Answer:
Treatment Of Cardiac Failure
- General measures.
- Bed rest
 - Regular isotonic exercises
 - Low-calorie intake.
 - Salt restriction.
 
 - Drug therapy.
- Digitalis – digoxin – 0.25 – 0.5 mg/ day
 - Sympathomimetic amine – dopamine, dobutamine.
 - Diuretics – thiazides, loop diuretcis, potassium sparing.
 - Vasodilators – ACE inhibitors – captopril – 12.5 – 25 mg TID.
 
 - Cardiac transplantation.
 
Question 12. Complications of heart failure.
Answer:
Complications Of Heart Failure
- Acute renal failure.
 - Hypokalemia.
 - Hyponatraemia.
 - Jaundice.
 - Deep vein thrombosis.
 - Arrhythmias.
 - Systemic embolism.
 
Question 13. Congenital heart disease.
Answer:
Congenital Heart Disease Clinical Features:
- Central cyanosis.
 - Growth retardation.
 - Syncope
 - Stature
 
Etiology:
- Infections – rubella infection.
 - Chromosomal defects – Down’s syndrome.
 - Connective tissue disorders,
 - Alcohol abuse.
 
Question 14. Classification of congenital heart disease.
Answer:
Classification Of Congenital Heart Disease
- Acyanotic.
- Acyanotic with left to right shunt.
- Atrial septal defect.
 - Ventricular septal defect.
 - Patent ductusarteriosus.
 
 - Acyanotic without shunt.
- Pulmonary stenosis.
 - Aortic stenosis.
 - Coarctation of aorta.
 
 
 - Acyanotic with left to right shunt.
 - Cyanotic.
- Complete transposition of great vessels.
 - Tetralogy of Fallot
 - Persistent truncus arteriosus.
 
 
Coronary artery disease short question answer
Question 15. Atrial septal defect.
Answer:
Atrial Septal Defect
It is a cyanotic heart disease with a left to right shunt through a defect in the interatrial septum.
Atrial Septal Defect Types:
- Ostium secundum defect – Involves fossa ovalis.
 - Ostium primum defect.
- Lies in the common atrioventricular canal.
 
 
Atrial Septal Defect Features:
- Asymptomatic.
 - Good volume pulse
 - Systolic murmur.
 - Diastolic flow murmur.
 - Wide and fixed splitting of the second heart.
 - Chest X-ray – shows an enlargement of the heart.
 - ECG – shows incomplete or complete right bundle branch block.
 - Echocardiogram – shows right ventricular dilatation, hypertrophy.
 - Color Doppler – measures flow velocities.
 
Atrial Septal Defect Treatment:
- Surgical closure of the defect.
 
Question 16. Fallor tetralogy.
Answer:
Fallot Tetralogy Components:
- Pulmonary stenosis.
 - Ventricular septal defect.
 - Over-riding of the aorta.
 - Right ventricular hypertrophy.
 
Fallot Tetralogy Clinical Features:
- Cyanosis – develops after 1 year of age.
 - The child may become apnoeic and may fall unconscious.
 - Growth retardation.
 - Grade 4 clubbing.
 - Polycythaemia.
 - Ejection systolic murmur.
 
Question 17. Rheumatic fever/Jone’s criteria.
Answer:
Rheumatic Fever/Jone’s Criteria
Rheumatic Fever is an acute inflammatory disease that occurs as a complication of group A streptococcal infection.
Rheumatic Fever Clinical Features:
- Jone’s criteria.
 - Major criteria.
 - Carditis
 - Polyarthritis
 - Chorea
 - Erythema marginatum
 - Subcutaneous nodules.
 - Minor criteria.
 - Fever
 - Arthralgia.
 - Raised ESR
 - Previous history of rheumatic fever.
 - Positive CRP.
 
Hypertension short answer format
Question 18. Aortic regurgitation – signs.
Answer:
Collapsing Or Good Volume Pulse:
- Bounding peripheral pulses.
 - Corrigan’s sign-dancing carotids.
 - Quincke’s sign-capillary pulsation in nail beds.
 - Duroziez’s sign.
 - Pistol shots sound.
 - De Musset’s sign – head nodding with a carotid pulse.
 - Cyanosis.
 - Pitting ankle oedema.
 - Tender hepatomegaly.
 
Question 19. Infective endocarditis.
Answer:
Infective Endocarditis
Infective Endocarditis is a microbial infection of the mural endocardium a heart valve or valves or lining of blood vessels.
Question 20. Complications of infective endocarditis.
Answer:
Complications Of Infective Endocarditis
If not treated, infective endocarditis may lead to.
- Stroke
 - Organ damage
 - Spread of infection to other body parts
 - Heart failure.
 - Septic embolization
 - Mycotic aneurysm.
 - Neurologic complications.
 - Renal complications.
 - Musculoskeletal complications.
 
Question 21. Complications of hypertension.
Answer:
Complications Of Hypertension
- Central nervous system.
- Cerebral atheroma
 - Transient cerebral ischaemic attacks
 - Stroke.
 - Hypertensive encephalopathy
 - Subarachnoid hemorrhage.
 
 - Retinopathy.
 - Heart
- Left ventricular hypertrophy.
 - Cardiac failure.
 
 - Kidney
- Proteinuria
 - Uraemia.
 
 
Atherosclerosis question and answer
Question 22. Hypertensive retinopathy.
Answer:
Hypertensive Retinopathy
It is an ophthalmic complication of hypertension.
Grades:

- Cardiac causes
- Malignant arrhythmias.
- Ischaemic heart disease
 - Heart blocks
 - Valvular heart disease
 - Infective endocarditis
 - Myocarditis
 - Cardiomyopathy.
 
 - Thromboembolism.
 
 - Malignant arrhythmias.
 - Idiopathic.
 
Question 23. Causes of sudden death in myocardial infarction.
Answer:
Causes Of Sudden Death In Myocardial Iinfarction
- Noncardiac causes
- Cerebral hemorrhage.
 - Ruptured aortic aneurysm.
 
 
Question 24. Risk factors for coronary artery disease.
Answer:
Old Age:
- Sex – common in males
 - Family history
 - Smoking, alcohol.
 - Hypertension.
 - Mental stress Hypercholesterolemia.
 - Diabetes mellitus.
 - Sedentary habits
 - Obesity
 - Polyunsaturated fatty acid deficiencies
 - Hyperfibrinogenaemia.
 - Low levels of anti-oxidant vitamins
 - Protein S and C deficiency.
 
Question 25. Aspirin.
Answer:
Aspirin
Aspirin is a non-selective COX inhibitor.
Aspirin Uses:
- As analgesic
 - Fever
 - Arthritis, fibromyositis
 - Acute rheumatic fever
 - Rheumatoid arthritis
 - Osteoarthritis.
 - Postmyocardial infarction.
 - Inflammatory bowel disease.
 
Aspirin Adverse Effects:
- Nausea, vomiting, epigastric distress.
 - Headache, dizziness, confusion.
 - Allergic reactions – rashes, urticaria, photosensitivity.
 - Hemolysis.
 - Nephrotoxicity.
 - Hepatotoxicity.
 - Reye’s syndrome.
 - Salicylism.
 
Heart failure short questions
Question 26. Oral anticoagulants.
Answer:
Oral Anticoagulants
Oral anticoagulants are drugs given orally to reduce the coagulability of blood.
Oral Anticoagulants Classification:
- Coumarin derivative.
- Bishydroxycoumarin, warfarin sodium, acenocoumarol.
 
 - Indanedione derivative.
- Phenindione.
 
 
Oral Anticoagulants Uses:
- Venous thrombosis
 - Pulmonary embolism.
 - Post-operative, post-stroke patients.
 - Rheumatic valvular disease.
 - Unstable angina.
 - Vascular surgery.
 
Question 27. Beta-blockers – uses.
Answer:
Hypertension:
- Angina pectoris.
 - Cardiac arrest
 - Myocardial infarction.
 - Congestive cardiac failure.
 - Obstructive cardiomyopathy.
 - Pheochromocytoma.
 - Thyrotoxicosis.
 - Glaucoma.
 - Prophylaxis of migraine.
 - Anxiety.
 
Question 28. Nitrates.
Answer:
Nitrates.
Nitrates are vasodilators. They are
- Nitroglycerin
 - Isosorbide dinitrate
 - Isosorbide mononitrate
 - Pentaerythritol tetranitrate.
 
Nitrates Uses:
- External angina
 - Vasospastic angina
 - Unstable angina
 - Cardiac failure.
 - Myocardial infarction.
 - Cyanide poisoning.
 - Relieves oesophageal spasm.
 - Spasmolytic.
 
Question 29. Anti-anginal drugs.
Answer:
Anti-Anginal drugs
Anti-anginal drugs are used to improve the balance between oxygen supply and demand.
- Drugs used in the treatment of angina are as follows.
 
- Nitrates
- Nitroglycerin, isosorbide dinitrate, isosorbide mononitrate.
 
 - Calcium channel blockers.
- Verapamil, diltiazem, amlodipine, nifedipine.
 
 - Beta-blockers
- Propranolol, atenolol.
 
 - Potassium channel openers.
- Nicorandil, pinacidil.
 
 - Miscellaneous.
- Dipyridamole, aspirin, ivabradine.
 
 
Question 30. Calcium channel blockers (CCB).
Answer:
Calcium Channel Blockers (CCB) are.
- Dihydropyridines.
- Nifedipine.
 - Nimodipine.
 - Amlodipine.
 - Nicardipine.
 - Felodipine.
 
 - Others.
- Verapamil.
 - Diltiazem.
 
 
Calcium Channel Blockers Use
- Angina pectoris
 - Hypertension.
 - Arrhythmia.
 - Peripheral vascular disease.
 - Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy.
 - Migraine.
 - Subarachnoid hemorrhage.
 - Preterm labor.
 
Question 31. ESR, erythrocyte sedimentation rate.
Answer:
ESR, Erythrocyte Sedimentation Rate
It was first demonstrated by Edmund Beirnacki in 1897.
Erythrocyte Sedimentation Rate Definition:
The rate at which the erythrocytes settle down in a vertical tube is called ESR.
Erythrocyte Sedimentation Rate Normal values:
- According to Westergren’s method.
- Males -3-7 mm in 1 hour.
 - Females – 5 – 9 mm in 1 hour.
 - Infants – 0 – 2 mm in 1 hour.
 
 
Erythrocyte Sedimentation Rate Significance:
- Confirms diagnosis.
 - Helps to assess the patient’s response to treatment for certain chronic inflammatory diseases.
 
Factors Affecting ESR:
- The specific gravity of RBC ais Rouleaux formation.
 - Size of RBC
 - Viscosity of blood.
 - RBC count.
 
Question 32. Heart sounds.
Answer:
Heart Sounds
Mechanical activities of the heart during each cardiac cycle produce some sounds called heart sounds.
Heart sounds Types

Question 33. Pericarditis.
Answer:
Etiology:
- Infection.
 - Immunological reaction.
 - Trauma
 - Neoplasm.
 - Idiopathic.
 
Pericarditis Clinical Features:
- Retrosternal pain.
 - Pain radiates to the shoulder and neck.
 - Aggravated by deep breathing, movement, changes of position, exercise, and swallowing.
 
Pericarditis Management:
- Aspirin – 600 mg 4 hourly.
 - Indomethacin – 25 mg 8 hourly.
 - Paracentesis.
 - Surgical drainage.
 
Cardiac diseases short question bank
Question 34. Collapsing pulse.
Answer:
Collapsing Pulse
It is a pulse characterized by a rapid upstroke, rapid downstroke, and a high volume.
Factors Effecting it:
- Increased stroke volume.
 - Diastolic leak back into left ventricle
 - Low systemic vascular resistance
 
Collapsing Pulse Significance:
- It occurs in.
- Aortic regurgitation
 - Patent ductusarteriosus
 - Ruptured sinus of Valsalva
 - Large arteriovenous fistula
 - Hyperkinetic circulatory states,
 
 
Question 35. Treatment of deep vein thrombosis.
Answer: ‘
Bed rest with legs elevated to 15 degrees
- Physiotherapy
 - Graduated elastic stockings.
 - Use of heparin.
 - Thrombolysis with streptokinase.
 - Thrombectomy.
 
Question 36. Corrigan’s sign.
Answer:
Corrigan’s Sign
Described by Sir Dominic John Corrigan.
- It is a sign of severe aortic valve regurgitation.
 - It is a jerky carotid pulse characterized by full expansion followed by quick collapse.
 - It appears in the advanced form of the disease.
 - By this time, the patient is usually symptomatic.
 
Corrigan’s Sign Causes:
- Rheumatic fever.
 - Infective endocarditis,
 - Marfan’s syndrome.
 - Ehlers – Danlos syndrome.
 - Collagen vascular disease.
 
Question 37. Cardiopulmonary resuscitation.
Answer:
Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation
Position the patient on a firm surface such as the floor.
- The heel of the hand should be placed over the lower end of the sternum and with the other hand above it depress the sternum for 3-4 cm,
 - It should be maintained at the rate of 60 per minute.
 - It should be continued as long as cardiac resuscitation remains feasible and cerebral function is intact.
 - It may take a few minutes or even a few hours.
 

Question 38. Intermittent claudication.
Answer:
Intermittent Claudication
It is a symptom occurring due to chronic arterial occlusion.

Intermittent Claudication Features:
- Pain occurs during exertion and gradually disappears within minutes upon cessation of activity.
 - The group of muscles which will be affected depends on the site of arterial occlusion.
 

Boyd’s Classification:

VIVA VOCE
- The most common congenital heart disease is a ventricular septal defect
 - The commonest cause of ventricular tachycardia is acute myocardial infarction
 - The commonest cyanotic heart disease is tetralogy The commonestRheumatic fever mostly results in mitral regurgitation
 - Markers the commonesfirstst in myocardial infarction is CPK-MB
 - The pacemaker of the heart is the SA node
 - The first symptom of heart failure is dyspnoea
 - In atrial flutter P wave of ECG sarees a saThe pacemaker appearance
 - Preload is the first diastolic filling pressure of the ventricle just before,e contraction
 - The force against which the ventricular contracts is termed as afterload
 - Kussumaul’s sign is an increase of jugular venous pressure during inspiration.