L Brick Rigden MD

Worried about your cholesterol and triglyceride levels? Planning to take another blood test to check on your cholesterol levels? Did you get a warning from your physician regarding elevated levels of triglycerides and LDL (low-density lipoproteins, the ‘bad’ cholesterol) cholesterol in your...

According to a new study, vitamin E supplementation may not reduce the risk of heart failure in women. This study is the first of its kind, focusing on the effectiveness of vitamin E supplementation in the prevention of heart failure. Vitamin E is an antioxidant that helps to protect the body from...

What is a bubble study?A bubble study is a type of echocardiogram, which is the ultrasound of the heart. An echocardiogram is done to visualize the heart and its surrounding areas. Better images of the heart can be produced when a “contrast” is used during the echocardiogram. In a bubble study,...

What is creatine phosphokinase (CPK)?Creatine phosphokinase (CPK) is an enzyme, which is predominantly present in the heart, brain, and skeletal muscles. Converting creatine into phosphate is the main task of this enzyme. The cells of the body then quickly consume or burn this phosphate and use it...

Enlarged heart or cardiomegaly is an indication of an underlying condition rather than a disease in itself. Enlargement makes the heart work harder than normal and weakens the heart muscles after a period of time. An enlarged heart has a number of causes including hypertension and coronary artery...

Heart failure refers to the condition where the organ fails to pump enough blood to different parts of the body to meet the demand. The disease refers to the weak pumping power of heart. In this condition, the rate of flow of blood through the heart is slow and the pressure increases. In most cases,...