Love Your Heart: A Cleveland Clinic Podcast

The management of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) can be complex. Dr. Nicholas Smedira speaks with Dr. Kevin Hodges about how his passion for patients with HCM pairs with one of his other specialty areas, the mitral valve.

Postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS) and inappropriate sinus tachycardia can both lead to syncope. Dr. Oussama Wazni continues the discussion about syncope with Dr. Kenneth Mayuga and Dr. Jeffery Courson.

Syncope (pronounced “sin ko pea”) is the medical term for fainting or passing out. Dr. Oussama Wazni and Dr. Kenneth Mayuga discuss why someone may feel like they are going to pass out, including postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS).

Calcium is needed for your heart and bones. Calcium supplements have been looked at to see if they are causing more harm than good. Julia Zumpano, a registered dietitian in the Department of Preventive Cardiology, talks about the importance of calcium and how to get it naturally though the foods you eat. Learn more about the Preventive Cardiology Program at Cleveland Clinic.

Heart disease does not mean that you need to give up your active lifestyle or sport. The Sports Cardiology Center team works with all athletes along the spectrum - high school and college age athletes, professional and masters athletes, recreational exercisers, to weekend warriors to help them achieve their goals. Dr. Michael Emery and Dr. Tamana Singh discuss the benefits of having a specialized team evaluate cardiac symptoms in an athletic patient and how they can help you stay active while caring for your heart.

Mitral valve repair fixes problems with your valve so you can lower your risk of serious complications. Dr. Marc Gillinov and Dr. Kevin Hodges discuss things to consider and what to expect if you need mitral valve surgery.

Calcium supplements may increase the risk of aortic stenosis. Dr. Samir Kapadia and Dr. Nicholas Kassis discuss supplemental calcium, both with and without Vitamin D, and the connection to aortic stenosis, the need for aortic valve replacement and the risk of death.

Pulmonary thromboendarterectomy (PTE) is a complex surgery to remove long-term blood clots from arteries in your lungs that can’t be treated with medication. Drs. Nicholas Smedira and Haytham Elgharably discuss what to expect if you need a surgery to remove these clots.

MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) tests are an incredibly helpful test for your care team to learn about your heart. Dr. Deborah Kwon, Director of Cardiac MRI at Cleveland Clinic talks with Christopher Nguyen, PhD, Director of MRI Research in the Advanced Imaging and Simulation Center for MRI, about the benefits of cardiac MRI and how they are working together improve this technology and the patient experience.

Left atrial appendage (LAA) closure is an alternative solution to anticoagulants (blood thinners) to prevent blood clots and stroke in some patients with atrial. Last week, the team spoke about who would be a good candidate for this procedure. This week, Dr. Oussama Wazni, Dr. Walid Saliba, Dr. Mohamed Kanj and Dr. Tyler Taigen discuss the challenges and strategies to ensure successful treatment and outcomes.