Cardiovascular Essentials for Nurses-Handout: Cardiovascular Specialties Handout

Handout: Cardiovascular Specialties Handout
Pdf Summary
Cardiovascular nursing encompasses several subspecialties that focus on different aspects of heart and vascular disease evaluation, management, and treatment. These subspecialties are categorized based on their descriptions, settings, and common conditions they deal with.<br /><br />The general/preventative subspecialty involves the prevention and management of heart and vascular diseases. It includes ambulatory/outpatient clinics, lipid clinics, diagnostic areas, and acute care. The common conditions treated in this subspecialty include coronary artery disease (CAD), dyslipidemia, heart failure (HF), valvular and structural heart disease, cardiac arrhythmias, and vascular disease.<br /><br />Cardiac imaging subspecialty focuses on the evaluation of heart and vascular diseases using diagnostic imaging techniques such as echocardiography, radiology, CT scans, MRI, nuclear medicine, and PET scans. The common conditions diagnosed and managed in this subspecialty are CAD, dyslipidemia, HF, valvular and structural heart disease, cardiac arrhythmias, and vascular disease.<br /><br />Interventional cardiology subspecialty involves the evaluation and management of heart and vascular diseases using invasive, catheter-based techniques, and device implantation. It is conducted in ambulatory/outpatient clinics, cardiac catheterization laboratories, and acute care settings. The common conditions treated in this subspecialty include CAD, myocardial infarction (MI), valvular and structural heart disease, and HF.<br /><br />Valvular and structural heart disease subspecialty focuses on the evaluation and management of diseases related to heart valves and structural abnormalities. It also involves invasive, catheter-based techniques, and device implantation. The common conditions dealt with in this subspecialty include aortic valve disease, mitral valve disease, tricuspid valve disease, pulmonary valve disease, atrial fibrillation, and septal defects.<br /><br />Other subspecialties include congenital heart disease (CHD) evaluation and management, electrophysiology (cardiac arrhythmia evaluation and management), heart failure evaluation and management, advanced heart failure, and cardiac transplant, cardio-oncology (cancer-related heart disease evaluation and management), cardio-obstetrics (evaluation, and management of cardiovascular issues in pregnant women), vascular medicine and surgery (evaluation and management of peripheral vascular disease), and cardiac and thoracic surgery (surgical management of cardiovascular disease).<br /><br />In summary, cardiovascular nursing encompasses a range of subspecialties that focus on the prevention, evaluation, and management of heart and vascular diseases, as well as the use of diagnostic imaging and invasive procedures. Each subspecialty caters to specific common conditions and is conducted in different settings, including ambulatory/outpatient clinics, diagnostic areas, acute care settings, and specialized laboratories.
Keywords
Cardiovascular nursing
subspecialties
heart and vascular disease
evaluation
management
treatment
general/preventative
cardiac imaging
interventional cardiology
valvular and structural heart disease