What to Look for in a Heart Disease Doctor
您与心脏病专家的关系很重要。这是找到完美匹配的方法。
叫我们sappy，but we’re in the mood to give our hearts a little love right now (and not just because February is Heart Health Month). Maintaining good heart health is essential to living a long and robust life, as evidenced by this sobering statistic: heart disease is the leading cause of death in the United States for both men and women. More than 600,000 Americans die from it every year.
No one knows heart health better than a cardiologist, so we tapped Michael Blaha, M.D., director of Clinical Research for the Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease at John Hopkins Medicine in Baltimore, to explain how to find the right doctor and develop a lasting expert-patient relationship.
HealthCentral:一些迹象可能是蒂姆e to look for a cardiologist?
布拉哈博士：心脏病影响超过9500万美国人，是美国的主要死亡原因，因此我首先建议您了解心脏健康状况。您有心脏病的家族史吗？你得到你的cholesterol checkedregularly and leading a healthy lifestyle? If you are over the age of 20, you should be getting your cholesterol checked every 4-6 years by your healthcare provider, as recommended by the American Heart Association (AHA), which will give you one good indication of heart health and if it’s time to manage it with a cardiologist.
There aren’t any physical symptoms of high cholesterol until it’s too late—when the plaque caused by low-density lipoprotein (LDL, or “bad” cholesterol) has built up enough in the walls of arteries to rupture into the bloodstream and cause a heart attack or stroke. If you have family history of heart disease, have experienced chest pain, high blood pressure, diabetes, or high cholesterol, it is likely a good time to see a cardiologist.
HC: How should someone go about finding a doctor who will be a good fit for them?
布拉哈博士：Ideally, patients are referred to a cardiologist by a primary care doctor who knows their medical history and preferences, which is why it is important to regularly check your cholesterol and talk about heart health with your general practitioner.
在确定心脏病专家是否是适合您的医生时，请记住，沟通在最佳的提供者关系中至关重要，因此请保持公开对话！将您的医生视为您心脏健康之旅的伴侣 - 他们需要听到exactlywhat you’re experiencing to make the appropriate treatment recommendations. If you feel rushed during doctors’ appointments and are not able to voice certain questions or concerns, it is likely not the doctor for you.
HC：您应该问您的心脏病医生哪些问题？
布拉哈博士：Be open with your doctor about the risk factors you are experiencing and your medical profile, along with any medications you are currently taking. From there, you can ask questions about your condition: what it is and how to treat it.
通常，心脏病专家会建议改变健康的生活方式，或者在运动和健康饮食不能保持胆固醇水平时，会开出一类称为汀类药物的药物，这些药物被证明可安全有效地治疗高胆固醇。询问有关他汀类药物疗法的选择以及期望的问题。有几名他汀类药物可用，但并非所有他汀类药物都是相同的 - 一个患者的独特需求有效的可能性可能会有所不同。
HC：您应该期望您的医生问您什么问题？
布拉哈博士：Your cardiologist will likely work to identify all the risk factors you have for heart disease, assessing your medical history and lifestyle (i.e. diet and exercise routine). Age, medical history, current medications, and ethnicity are all among the multiple factors you and your healthcare provider should consider when determining which statin option best meets your needs. You should expect your doctor to ask questions about any tests or past procedures as well. All this information will give them insight into the unique treatment plan for you.
HC: What are your suggestions for maintaining open communication with your cardiologist? How often should you be seeing them, and what information should you be sharing with them regularly?
布拉哈博士：第一次访问后不要让对话停止！如果您已经在高胆固醇的他汀类药物上，并且正在遇到挑战，那么让您的医生知道很重要，因为有50％的人停止服用他们的statin在开始后的一年之内。这可能是非常危险的 - 无法感受到高胆固醇，因此您不应该在不咨询医生的情况下停止他汀类药物。询问您的医生应该如何定期去看，以便您可以对他汀类药物治疗，感觉如何，如果您记得每天服用他汀类药物。
请记住，并非所有他汀类药物都是相同的强度或以相同的方式代谢，甚至相同的他汀类药物在人身之间的处理方式也可以不同。故事的寓意是：如果您对一个他汀类药物不满意，请与您的医生谈谈另一种更适合您的他汀类药物。例如，livalo（pitavastatin）是一种治疗选择。
HC：心脏病专家在帮助制定心脏病的治疗和预防计划方面扮演什么角色？
布拉哈博士：您的心脏病专家是制定心脏病治疗和预防计划的合作伙伴，而您俩拥有的信息越多，伙伴关系就越好。如果您对当前的治疗计划不满意，请说出来。例如，如果您在高胆固醇中取代他汀类药物遇到困难，或者正在考虑完全停止他汀类药物，请与您的医生开始就治疗方案进行对话。
Research shows that people who request a specific prescription treatment from their doctor usually receive it—doctors want to find ways to help patients stay on life saving medications! So, when crafting a plan to stay on a statin, if there is a specific statin you want to try, ask your doctor if it may be right for you and work with them to create an individualized plan that fits your needs.
- 美国心脏病：疾病控制与预防中心。（n.d。）。“心脏病事实。”cdc.gov/heartdisease/facts.htm
