by cardiopulmonarydiagnostic | Aug 9, 2026 | Uncategorized
Your arteries carry oxygen-rich blood from your heart to the rest of your body. Healthy arteries are strong, muscle-lined tubes that keep blood flowing smoothly. But if part of an artery wall gets weak, it can balloon out and form an aneurysm.
Aneurysms are abnormal bulges in arteries. They typically form without symptoms, but they can quickly become a medical emergency if they burst and cause internal bleeding.
You can’t completely prevent an aneurysm, but you can learn your risk and take steps to improve your heart and vascular health. Kunal Patel, MD and our team at NJ Cardiovascular Institute specialize in aneurysm screening and heart disease care.
We share more about aneurysms, why they form, and how you can protect your health.
Types of aneurysms
Aneurysms can form in any artery in your body. They’re more common in certain areas, including the heart, abdomen, brain, legs, and spleen.
Aortic aneurysms and brain aneurysms are two of the most common types. Since they directly impact the arteries of your heart or brain, they’re also some of the most dangerous.
Aortic aneurysm
Your aorta is a large artery that starts in your heart and passes through your chest and abdomen. Aortic aneurysms develop when a bulge forms along your aorta, either in your chest or your abdomen.
An abdominal aortic aneurysm occurs in your abdomen, and a thoracic aortic aneurysm forms in your chest. Together, aortic aneurysms cause about 25,000 deaths in the United States each year.
Brain aneurysm
A cerebral aneurysm develops in the arteries that transport blood to your brain. These aneurysms are also called brain aneurysms or berry aneurysms. In the United States, about 12,000 brain aneurysms are fatal each year.
Risk factors for aneurysms
Experts aren’t sure exactly what causes aneurysms to form, but they’re generally linked to heart conditions that cause your arterial walls to get weaker.
Certain factors may increase your risk of aneurysm. Dr. Patel may recommend screening for aneurysm or other heart conditions if you:
Are male
Are over age 60
Have high blood pressure
Smoke
Are overweight or obese
Having a family history of aneurysm or heart disease may also increase your risk of developing an aneurysm yourself.
Treatment options for aneurysms
Most of the time, aneurysms develop over time. Unless an aneurysm ruptures, it doesn't cause noticeable symptoms. Aneurysms may only be detected during routine medical testing.
If you’re at risk for an aneurysm, Dr. Patel may recommend an aneurysm screening to evaluate the health of your arteries. These screenings can also help our team monitor your aneurysm, arteries, and heart health before complications arise.
A ruptured aneurysm can quickly turn into a medical emergency. Signs of a ruptured aneurysm may vary depending on the location of the aneurysm, but may include:
Dizziness or lightheadedness
Increased heart rate
Abdominal, back, or chest pain
Severe headache
Ruptured aneurysms need prompt emergency medical care, and often require emergency surgery. Rapid care can help to prevent serious complications that may otherwise lead to death.
When you have an aneurysm, monitoring it could save your life. Come in for a consultation to learn more about our heart care services at NJ Cardiovascular Institute. Book online today or call the office nearest you — in Lakewood, Newark, Paramus, or Secaucus, New Jersey.
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by cardiopulmonarydiagnostic | Aug 9, 2026 | Uncategorized
The heart is the hardest-working muscle in the human body. It beats more than 100,000 times and pumps 2,000 gallons of blood each and every day.
You rely on your heart to send oxygen and other nutrients throughout your body, so it’s no surprise that your heart health affects your overall well-being. Your overall health affects your heart too, and taking care of both is important.
Kunal Patel, MD, and our team at NJ Cardiovascular Institute specialize in treating both acute and chronic heart conditions, and we’re here to help you build heart-healthy habits in your daily life.
Our unique Heart Smart Program takes a comprehensive approach to cardiovascular wellness. With components from nutritional counseling to pain management, the program brings education and professional support together just for you.
Components of our Heart Smart Program
Dr. Patel and our team prioritize patient education to make heart health easier at home. We offer educational sessions, along with top-tier cardiovascular care, to patients involved in our Heart Smart Program. The program is tailored to meet your needs, and may include managing your chronic condition, making lifestyle changes, and performing diagnostic testing when needed.
Chronic condition management
Many heart conditions are chronic, which means they need ongoing care. The Heart Smart Program provides ongoing management of your chronic condition, including heart rhythm monitoring, pain management, and medication management. We check in with you regularly to ensure your treatments remain effective.
Lifestyle support
Taking care of your heart means making healthy changes in many aspects of your life. If you’re recently diagnosed with a heart condition, all the changes might seem overwhelming, but the Heart Smart Program can help.
Our team offers nutrition counseling to help you learn about eating heart-healthy foods. We can recommend exercise regimens to strengthen your body safely, and we have healthy lifestyle programs so you can find the support you need.
Diagnostic services
Diagnostic testing is the most effective way to identify your heart condition, but health screenings don’t stop once you have a diagnosis. Dr. Patel and our team use a range of diagnostic tests to assess how well your treatment plan is working.
A few common diagnostic tests we rely on include stress testing, ultrasound, echocardiogram, and ankle-brachial index (ABI) testing.
Is the Heart Smart Program right for me?
As a comprehensive wellness program specifically designed for people with heart problems, it could protect and improve your health if you have a history of heart problems.
Common symptoms that could indicate a heart problem include:
Chest pain
Heart palpitations
High blood pressure
High cholesterol
Irregular heartbeat (arrhythmia)
Shortness of breath
If you’re experiencing any of these symptoms, it’s important to seek a professional diagnosis. Our team is highly trained in diagnosing and treating a range of heart conditions, so you can enjoy your best possible health.
The Heart Smart Program is a good option for people with chronic heart conditions and/or a history of heart problems, like:
Cardiac surgery
Congestive heart failure (CHF)
Heart attack
Heart disease
Heart stents or angioplasty
High blood pressure
Pacemaker
Systolic heart failure
The program starts with a comprehensive evaluation. We take your medical history and existing health issues into account, partnering with you to manage your condition and improve your quality of life. We’re with you each step of the way to answer your questions, provide accountability, and promote your health.
Ready to find out how our Heart Smart Program could help you? Contact us online or over the phone to schedule a consultation with Dr. Patel at one of our offices in Secaucus, Newark, or Paramus, New Jersey.
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by cardiopulmonarydiagnostic | Aug 9, 2026 | Uncategorized
More than one-third of American adults have high blood pressure. It’s a common condition that carries serious health risks. Having high blood pressure increases your risk of suffering a stroke or a heart attack, but the good news is that it’s treatable.
At NJ Cardiovascular Institute, Kunal Patel, MD, and our team specialize in heart care and high blood pressure. We take a comprehensive approach to preventing and managing high blood pressure, and treatment often begins with healthy lifestyle changes.
Whether you have high blood pressure now, or you’re hoping to avoid a diagnosis in the future, lifestyle adjustments can do a world of good for your heart. You can improve your heart health and your blood pressure numbers with these tips:
Eat a heart-healthy diet
The food you eat directly affects your blood pressure and your heart health. To fight the effects of high blood pressure, eat a nutritious diet that contains fruits, vegetables, whole grains, lean proteins, healthy fats, and low-fat dairy.
Avoid foods that are high in sodium and trans fats. That includes processed foods, bakery items, and fast food. Enjoying alcoholic drinks in moderation is generally okay, but keep drinks to one per day for women and two for men.
Quit smoking
Smoking cigarettes is one of the leading causes of heart disease, and heart disease is the top cause of death for men and women in the United States. Smoking damages your heart and lungs, and it’s also linked to high blood pressure.
Quitting smoking isn’t easy, but even if you’ve smoked for years, it’s not too late to quit. Your heart health begins improving as early as a few days after your last cigarette, and keeps improving with time. Kicking the habit helps lower blood pressure too.
Make exercise a habit
Regular exercise can lower your blood pressure naturally over time. To boost your heart health, strive to get at least 30 minutes of aerobic exercise most days a week. Aerobic exercise includes activities like walking, jogging, biking, and swimming.
Incorporating exercise can lower your blood pressure and enhance your overall health. In fact, one study found that for sedentary older adults, regular aerobic exercise was just as effective as some blood pressure medications.
Manage your weight
Being overweight or obese contributes to high blood pressure, but losing extra weight can reduce your blood pressure numbers. Talk to Dr. Patel to find out what your ideal body weight is and whether your weight may be affecting your heart health.
If you’re overweight or obese, you don’t have to participate in a strenuous weight-loss program to see a difference in your health. When you eat a heart-healthy diet and incorporate exercise into your daily routine, you might be surprised to find that extra pounds drop off naturally.
You can take a proactive approach to managing high blood pressure with these healthy lifestyle changes. To learn more about how your lifestyle affects your heart and how our team at NJ Cardiovascular Institute can help, schedule a consultation online or call one of our New Jersey offices for an appointment.
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by cardiopulmonarydiagnostic | Aug 9, 2026 | Uncategorized
Chest pain takes many different forms. From an ongoing dull ache to sharp pains that come and go, experiencing chest pain can make you worry that you’re having a heart attack.
While chest pain can indicate a heart attack, there are lots of other possible causes, and they’re not all life-threatening. Muscle strains, acid reflux, and even indigestion could cause chest discomfort, as pain is your body’s way of telling you something is wrong.
Chest pain has a variety of causes, but it’s not normal and you should never ignore it. Kunal Patel, MD and our cardiac team at NJ Cardiovascular Institute specialize in diagnosing and treating chest pain, and we’re here to help you figure out what’s causing your discomfort.
Possible causes of chest pain
Your chest includes the area on the front of your body, from your stomach to your shoulders. It contains lots of bones and muscles, and the two main organs in your chest are your heart and lungs.
A few common vascular conditions that may cause chest pain include:
Heart attack (myocardial infarction)
Angina
Aortic dissection
Pericarditis
Pulmonary embolism
Sometimes, chest pain has nothing to do with your heart or vascular system. Other conditions that can cause chest discomfort include:
Acid reflux (heartburn)
Bronchitis or pneumonia
Gallstones
Muscle strain
Panic attack
Shingles
Different conditions cause different types of pain, but you shouldn’t try to self-diagnose your condition.
Making a doctor’s appointment for chest pain
If you notice mild-to-moderate chest pain without any other symptoms, schedule a cardiology appointment to have an exam. At NJ Cardiovascular Institute, we offer comprehensive diagnostic testing, including stress tests and echocardiograms, to identify any irregularities in your heart’s function.
Regular doctor’s appointments are important, even if you aren’t bothered by chest pain. High blood pressure, high cholesterol, and heart disease are very common health issues that can cause heart problems – but they don’t have noticeable warning signs.
Dr. Patel and our team want to make heart health part of our patients’ lives. Our Heart Smart Program makes it easy to implement healthy lifestyle changes and improve your heart health one step at a time.
Emergency care for chest pain
Heart attack, pulmonary embolism, and other serious conditions are life-threatening and require emergency medical care. Call 911 or go to the nearest emergency department if you notice symptoms including:
Crushing or squeezing chest pain
Pain in shoulders or arms
Shortness of breath
Lightheadedness
Cold sweat
Nausea
Vomiting
If you’re unsure whether you or someone near you is experiencing a medical emergency, don’t hesitate to seek immediate medical attention.
Chest pain isn’t normal, but experiencing it doesn’t mean you need to panic. Turn to Dr. Patel and our team at NJ Cardiovascular Institute for quality heart care. Call the New Jersey office nearest you or request your first appointment online today.
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by cardiopulmonarydiagnostic | Aug 9, 2026 | Uncategorized
Your heart works hard. It beats every minute of every day, pumping some 2,000 gallons of blood through your body daily. It delivers oxygen and nutrients to your body through your blood, and it’s what keeps you alive.
You probably know that taking care of your heart is important for overall wellness, but what’s the best way to improve your heart health? And what happens if you’re at risk for common heart problems like heart disease?
Our team at NJ Cardiovascular Institute can help you find answers. Kunal Patel, MD, specializes in heart health and managing chronic heart conditions. Today, we’re exploring some things you might not know about your heart — and how learning about it can help you enjoy better health.
Heart health involves more than just your heart
What comes to mind when you think of heart problems? Something like chest pain, heart attacks, or heart palpitations might be your first thought, but heart health extends far beyond your heart muscle alone.
Your cardiovascular system, also called the circulatory system, is made up of your heart, arteries, veins, and capillaries. Your heart pumps blood through your arteries, sending oxygen- and nutrient-rich blood through your body. Oxygen-poor blood travels through your veins back to your heart and lungs, and the process starts over again.
Some common health conditions, like high cholesterol and high blood pressure, damage your arteries and have a negative impact on your heart over time. Damaged or blocked arteries make it harder for blood to flow smoothly through your veins, which means your heart has to work harder to do its job.
You could be at risk for heart disease
Heart disease, also known as cardiovascular disease, is the leading cause of death in the United States. It’s responsible for about one in four deaths, but it’s largely preventable with proactive heart care.
Since heart disease can develop without noticeable warning signs, it’s important to recognize the factors that could increase your risk.
The three main risk factors for heart disease are:
High blood pressure
High cholesterol
Smoking
Nearly 50% of American adults have at least one of these three risk factors for heart disease.
Other factors that could increase your risk of developing heart disease include:
Diabetes
Eating an unhealthy diet
Excessive alcohol consumption
Obesity
Physical inactivity
If you think you could be at risk for heart disease, schedule a consultation with Dr. Patel. He offers diagnostic testing to evaluate your heart health, and our team works with you to prevent disease progression and improve your heart health.
Improving heart health doesn’t have to be complicated
It’s vital to take care of your heart, but it’s not always easy to know where to start. That’s why we have our Heart Smart Program.
The Heart Smart Program is a comprehensive approach to heart health. We make it simple to implement heart-healthy changes and get the preventive heart care you need. It’s a good option for people with existing heart conditions, but anyone can benefit from taking these steps to improve their heart health.
The program includes nutritional management, exercise routines, and educational sessions to help you make healthy lifestyle changes. You learn about how your diet affects your heart and the important role exercise plays in cardiovascular wellness.
Depending on your needs, we offer a range of diagnostic services to identify and monitor existing heart conditions. We partner with you to help you achieve your best possible health, no matter your age.
Curious about more ways to improve your heart health? Schedule a consultation with Dr. Patel and our team. Call the office nearest you or book an appointment online today.
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