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Antiphospholipid Syndrome (APS, Hughes syndrome, sticky blood syndrome): People suffering from this syndrome expose an increased tendency to thrombosis.

Thrombi usually occur in the lower extremities, but other body regions can be involved as well.
According to one theory, this syndrome is an auto-immune disorder with impaired immune system causing an attack against the body's own tissues and organs.
It can be diagnosed by blood tests. Treatment includes anti-coagulants.
Blood lipids: See entry: Cholesterol
BMI (body mass index): An index for the evaluation of the body weight considering height and gender. The value is calculated by dividing the body weight in kilograms by the square of height in meters.

The desired value for women is between 22 and 25 and for man between 23 and 26.

Higher values mean overweight.

If the values exceed 40, we are dealing with morbid obesity.

As a rule, overweight is one of the risk factors for cardiac disease.
Cholesterol: Cholesterol is a kind of fatty substance that is produced by the body (mainly in the liver). It is the basic material, of which various hormones of the body are composed. It is also a component of food, found mainly in food products including animal fat.

The total Cholesterol level is normally defined as low if it is below 220 mg/dL.

To maintain a healthy heart, the recommendation is reducing this level below 150 mg/dL.

Study results indicate that by reducing total Cholesterol level by 1%, the risk of acquiring a cardiac disease diminishes by 2%. For example, reducing the total Cholesterol from 200 to 180, decreases the risk of acquiring a heart disease by 20%.

It is customary to distinguish between LDL (low density lipoprotein), called "bad cholesterol" and HDL (high density lipoprotein) called "good cholesterol".

The terms HDL and LDL refer to the protein component that carries and transports Cholesterol in the circulation.

LDL cholesterol (the "bad cholesterol") is known to be involved in the Atherosclerotic process.

Its recommended high limit for persons with a high risk for a heart disease is 130 mg/dL.

In people with an existing heart disease, the targeted level of the "bad" cholesterol is 70 - 80 mg/dL.
HDL cholesterol has a protective effect on the cardiac arteries.

The level recommended for women is more than 45 mg/dL and for men more than 55 mg/dL.

Studies demonstrate that an increase by 1% of the "good" cholesterol is associated with a 3-4% decrease in risk of acquiring a heart attack. It is known that aerobic physical activity helps in increasing the "good" Cholesterol level.
Coronary risk factors: A medical condition, lifestyle or environmental threat that increases the statistical risk for the development of atherosclerosis in the cardiac vasculature, i.e. the Coronary arteries.

Among these risk factors the following are usually included: advanced age, male gender (during the procreative years, women are usually better protected then men), genetic factors (family history), Hypertension, Diabetes, high blood lipid levels, obesity, lack of physical activity, smoking and mental stress.
Diabetes mellitus: Diabetes is a metabolic disease characterized by high glucose (sugar) concentration in serum and in urine.

The Latin name Diabetes mellitus means "sweet urine".

The main problem underlying Diabetes is relative or absolute deficiency of the hormone Insulin.

This hormone is produced in the pancreas and is secreted into blood as a reaction to increasing sugar levels.

Insulin is responsible for glucose transfer from the blood into various body cells, where glucose is indispensable for the generation of energy.

Diabetics suffer from Insulin deficiency, from impairment in its function or from increased tissue resistance to Insulin and thus, when blood sugar levels increase, an adequate response of Insulin release is absent.

As a result, glucose accumulates in blood. This condition is called Hyperglycemia.

When glucose level surpasses a certain threshold, it is also excreted in urine. This condition is called Glycosuria.

The symptoms resulting from elevated glucose levels are increased secretion of urine, thirst and weight loss.

There are two main types of Diabetes: Type 1 (IDDM, Insulin dependent Diabetes Mellitus) and type 2 (NIDDM, non-Insulin dependent Diabetes Mellitus).

Type 1 Diabetes, also known as youth onset Diabetes, is usually manifested in childhood, its cause is Insulin deficiency resulting from destruction of the pancreatic cells responsible for Insulin secretion. Therapy consists of obligatory external Insulin supply.

Type 2 Diabetes, also called adult onset Diabetes, develops in adults, usually after age 40, is more frequent in females and its incidence increases markedly in obesity. It has a strong hereditary component. Its primary cause is low reactivity or increased resistance of the tissues to Insulin.

This condition of high Insulin resistance is closely related to the condition named "Metabolic Syndrome" or "Syndrome X".

This syndrome includes central obesity (in the abdominal area and around organs), Hypertension, disturbed blood lipid levels, cardiovascular diseases, tendency to hyper-coagulation and more.

Treatment includes changes in life style: physical activity, appropriate diet, weight reduction and orally administered drugs. Sometimes, also Insulin treatment is necessary.

High blood sugar levels increase the risk for the development of vascular damage such as Atherosclerosis, and therefore Diabetes is a major risk factor of Ischemic heart disease.

Vascular damage in diabetes patients is not limited to only cardiac vessels, but can also include multi-system damage involving kidneys, lower extremities, brain, heart and eyes.

An additional damage that afflicts diabetic patients is neural damage.

The combination of peripheral nerve damage resulting in altered sensitivity to pain with increased tendency to Atherosclerosis may make the treatment of diabetic patients more difficult and deteriorate their condition.

For example, due to Coronary artery damage, the diabetic patient is exposed to a higher risk of heart attack on the one hand, while the nerve lesion with altered sensitivity may affect the manifestation of the attack and interfere with early diagnosis, on the other hand.
Familial hypercholesterolemia: A genetic defect causing elevation of blood cholesterol and lipid levels.
Homocystein: Homocystein is an amino acid and its high level in blood increases the risk of the development of Atherosclerosis and thereby the risk of cardiac disease and heart attack.

The main reason for increased Homocystein levels in blood is folic acid deficiency and deficiency of vitamins of the B group. Consuming fruit and vegetables as well as supplementation of these vitamins helps in decreasing homocystein levels in blood.
Hypercholesterolemia: Greater than normal Cholesterol levels in blood. The tendency of developing high Cholesterol levels is effected by genetic factors, nutrition, age, body weight and others.

High Cholesterol level is one of the risk factors for the development of Ischemic heart disease.
Hyperlipidemia: Higher than normal blood fat (lipid) levels.
Hypertension: This is a very frequent disorder, characterized by blood pressure elevation on repeat measurements with values exceeding 140/90 mm Hg.

According to the recent guidelines of the Israeli Hypertension Association, blood pressure values below 120/80 mm Hg are defined as normal, values between 120-139/80-89 mm Hg require follow-up, because people with values in this range are at a double risk for developing Hypertension in the future.

Values between 140/90 and 159/99 mm Hg are defined as mild Hypertension and values above 180/110 mm Hg are defined as severe Hypertension.

Values between mild and severe constitute moderate Hypertension.
In the vast majority of cases, the causative factor is unknown.

In the minority of cases, an organic cause can be found, such as kidney problems, hormonal (endocrine) disorders and others.

In the medical literature, this disorder is called "silent killer", because it is usually symptomless.

Therefore, it is very important to adopt a habit of measuring blood pressure periodically in order to detect the disease timely.

After the initial diagnosis is made, the treatment is established. The first step of the treatment is usually a change in life style leading to weight loss, physical activity and dietary adaptations.

If no response is present, a therapeutic attempt with drugs is performed.

There are many anti-hypertensive drugs with different action mechanisms.

In most cases, treatment is necessary for lifetime.

Treatment and balancing are very important, because this disorder is one of the most important risk factors for the development of Ischemic heart disease.
Obesity: Overweight due to fat accumulation in the body.

The principal indicator of obesity is the body mass index (BMI).

BMI is calculated by dividing the body weight in kilograms by the square of height in meters (BMI = kg/m^2).

The accepted definitions of fat level according to BMI are:

BMI less than 18.5 - underweight

BMI between 18.5 - 24.9 - normal weight

BMI between 25.0 - 29.9 - mild overweight

BMI between 30.0 - 39.9 - substantial overweight

BMI more than 40.0 - severe/morbid obesity

An additional index evaluating the obesity status is the waist to hip ratio (WHR).

Many recent medical studies confirmed the association between obesity and the development of Hypertension, Diabetes, cardiac diseases and certain kinds of cancer.
Physical Exercise, Exercising, Workout: Lack of permanent physical activity is now recognized as a risk factor for the development of Ischemic heart disease.

Aerobic exercise improves heart resilience (educating it to reach higher levels of effort with less pulse rate and work load), helps in weight reduction, more efficient lipid metabolism and can facilitate the creation of natural blood vessels bypassing stenoses (collateral arteries).

The recommended aerobic heart-protecting physical activity is walking, jogging, bicycle riding and more. In fact, during such activities, large muscle groups are continuously activated without interruptions. In order for aerobic physical activity to achieve its heart-protective goals, it is recommended to engage in such activities 3 to 5 times weekly for 30 to 50 minutes each time.
Risk factors: A certain medical condition, a certain style of life or a certain environmental threat that enhances a person's risk to acquire a disease. Risk enhancement is a term referring to statistical likelihood and does not deal with a causative relation.
Triglyceride: A certain kind of lipid consisting of Glycerin bound to 3 fatty acid molecules.

High triglyceride levels indicate a tendency to increased incidence of heart diseases, especially in women.

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