Heart & Blood Vessels

• Congestive Heart Failure

  Heart failure is when the heart can’t pump blood the way it should. Congestive heart failure (CHF) is when blood backs up in the heart.

• DASH Diet for High Blood Pressure

  Doctor may recommend the DASH diet for kids who’ve had a blood pressure reading that was higher than normal. The DASH diet is not a strict diet, but more of a lifestyle.

• Dictionary: Aorta

  The aorta is the major blood vessel that carries blood away from the heart to the rest of the body.

• Dictionary: Blood Pressure

  Blood pressure is a measurement that tells how hard the heart is pumping to move blood through the blood vessels.

• Dictionary: Left Atrium

  The left atrium receives blood full of oxygen from the lungs and then empties the blood into the left ventricle.

• Dictionary: Left Ventricle

  The left ventricle pumps blood full of oxygen out to the body.

• Dictionary: Right Atrium

  The right atrium receives blood low in oxygen from the body and then empties the blood into the right ventricle.

• Dictionary: Right Ventricle

  The right ventricle pumps blood low in oxygen to the lungs.

• Double Outlet Right Ventricle (DORV)

  Double outlet right ventricle (DORV) is a heart defect where the aorta connects to the heart in the wrong place.

• Ebstein Anomaly

  Ebstein anomaly is a rare heart defect that affects the tricuspid valve. It can cause problems that range from very mild to very serious.