There are a variety of heart diseases that are often based on many different causes. Inflammation, injury and alteration in old age can alter and damage the heart. Here is a selection of the most common heart diseases.

Classification of diseases of the heart

Below you will find the most common diseases of the heart divided into:

  1. Structural changes of the heart
  2. Vascular diseases of the heart
  3. Infectious heart disease
  4. Disorders of the excitation of the heart
  5. Congenital heart disease
  6. Other heart diseases

Structural changes of the heart


When listening to the heart, you can usually hear only so-called heart sounds. These reflect various actions of the heart and should be heard rhythmically and clearly. A heart murmur, on the other hand, is a sound that is not part of the normal heartbeat.
Heart sounds can be without disease, but also indicate a heart defect or heart valve disease.

For more information on this topic, see: Heart Noises

Valvular heart disease

In total, there are four heart valves, which can each be damaged by different causes in two directions. The four heart valves ensure that the heart chambers fill up sufficiently during the relaxation phase and that the blood can be pumped in the right direction during the ejection phase. Ultimately, they are practically there for the blood to be pumped in one direction only. Their function is impaired if there is a stenosis (obstruction of flow) or insufficiency (incomplete valve closure).


The aortic valve is located on the left ventricle. It carries the blood past it to enter the aorta and the rest of the body. There are several reasons for aortic valve stenosis or insufficiency. The result of the stenosis is an outflow of blood from the valve, which is often reflected in a heart murmur. In aortic valve regurgitation, the valve does not close completely, causing blood to flow from the aorta back to the heart, adding additional stress to the heart.

  • aortic valve stenosis
  • Aortenklappeninsuffizienz


There are a variety of causes of structural changes to the Mtralklappe. The most common forms include mitral valve stenosis, prolapse and insufficiency. The stenosis and prolapse (protuberance of the valve) leads to a flow inhibition of the blood in the heart. In mitral regurgitation, incomplete closure of the valve causes most of the blood to flow in the wrong direction, resulting in multiple heart activity.

  • mitral
  • Mitral valve prolapse
  • Mitral regurgitation.

Diseases of the heart muscle

The term cardiomyopathy generally describes damage to the heart muscle. Further subdivisions may be made as to the cause of the disease, such as whether the result is myocardial thickening or other structural change. In most cases, cardiac function is impaired.

For more information on this topic, see: cardiomyopathy, myocardial insufficiency, and myocardial thickening.

Vascular diseases in the heart

Coronary heart disease (CHD)

In the presence of coronary heart disease (CHD), the coronary arteries (called coronary arteries), through which the heart muscle is supplied with oxygen and important nutrients, narrows. The blood flow in the coronary artery is reduced, so the heart is getting less well. The most common cause of coronary heart disease in industrialized countries is atherosclerosis (so-called arteriosclerosis) of the coronary arteries.

Angina pectoris

The term angina pectoris refers to a feeling of tightness in the chest, which is associated with severe acute pain. The trigger for the attack is an insufficient supply of the heart with blood, a so-called ischemia. Angina pectoris is considered a cardinal symptom of coronary heart disease (CHD).

Heart attack

Myocardial infarction (myocardial infarction) is defined as the death of myocardial cells due to an oxygen deficiency situation (ischaemia) of the heart or a circumscribed region of the heart. In more than 95% of cases, the cause of the disease is the cause of coronary heart disease. The most common symptom in the acute situation is an attack-like, severe pain behind the sternum (angina pectoris).

Poor circulation

Circulatory insufficiency (hypotension) is, by definition, present when the systolic blood pressure value (the value usually called first or above) is less than 105 mmHg. The second value, the so-called diastolic blood pressure, is usually below 65mmHg in people with hypotension. The result is that the brain is not supplied with enough blood in the short term, with the result that one feels weak and dizzy. Occasionally, it can come especially after a quick getting up to an Ohmachtsanfall.

aortic aneurysm

An aortic aneurysm is an outgrowth of the vessel wall or vessel walls. At least one shift must be affected to meet the definition. There are three types of aortic aneurysm, the aneurysm verum, dissecans and spurium.


The aortic coarctation refers to a narrowing of the aortic vessel in the area of ​​the isthmus aortae. The aorta makes after leaving the heart a bow (aortic arch). At the point of transition to the descending aorta, the descending branch of the arch, lies the narrowed site. This is also the site of the fetal ductus arteriosus.

Infectious heart disease

Myocarditis (myocarditis)

Myocarditis describes the inflammation of the heart muscle. The reasons for this can be manifold. If the disease is caused by bacteria and viruses, it is called infectious mycarditis. However, if toxic substances come into question as a cause, it is the toxic form of the disease.


The inflammation of the heart valves (endocarditis) represents a potentially life-threatening disease, usually caused by microbial pathogens (ie viruses, bacteria or fungi).
Not infrequently, structural damage to the heart valves, which are associated with a functional defect, the result.

Pericarditis (pericarditis)

In pericarditis, which is referred to in technical terms as pericarditis, there is an inflammation of the pericardium, which limits the heart to the outside. Per year there are probably 1000 diseases per one million inhabitants, so the disease is not so rare.
However, the disease is often not detected because it often runs asymptomatic and often heals usually within one to two weeks by itself.

Disturbances of the excitation


An arrhythmia (also called arrhythmia, "unrhythmic") is a disorder of the normal heartbeat, caused by abnormal processes in the formation and conduction of excitation in the heart muscle. The disorder can manifest itself in many different clinical pictures. Cardiac arrhythmias can be life-threatening and occur as a result of heart disease or other diseases. But they also occur in healthy organic and can have no disease value.

Palpitations (tachycardia)

Tachycardia refers to a whole group of cardiac arrhythmias. Common to them is an inappropriately fast pulse of more than 100 beats per minute and an origin of arrhythmia above the ventricles. It affects mostly younger patients, women more often than men.


A pacemaker is an artificial clock for the heart. It is used in patients who have a heart that beats too slowly (bradycardia) or frequently pauses. The device periodically emits electrical impulses that stimulate the heart muscle, stimulating it to contract (contraction).


The term asystole is a medical term. He describes the complete absence of an electrical and mechanical heart action, so the heart is still. Asystole is deadly untreated within a very short time and requires immediate medical intervention. Asystole can be recognized on the ECG. Clinically, it shows itself, inter alia, by a missing pulse.

Congenital heart disease

Fallot tetralogy

Fallot's tetralogy is a congenital heart defect. It is one of the most common cyanotic heart defects. Cyanotic means that the heart defect has a negative effect on the oxygen content of the blood. The blood, which is pumped from the heart to the organs, therefore contains too little oxygen. This type of heart defect has a so-called right-left shunt. So there is a normally absent connection between the right and left heart.

cardiac defect

A heart defect is a congenital or acquired damage of the heart or individual heart structures and adjacent vessels, which can lead to a functional impairment of the cardiovascular system or the heart-lung system.


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