Heart audiobook cover - A History

Heart

A History

Sandeep Jauhar

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Categories:
HistoryHealth & Nutrition

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Heart
Symbolism & Cultural History+
Emotional & Physical Connection+
Surgical Pioneers & Breakthroughs+
Lifestyle & The Framingham Study+
Psychosocial Factors+
Treating Fatty Plaque+

Quiz — Test Your Understanding

Question 1 of 8
Why did the cardioid (heart) shape become strongly associated with romance and courtship in the Middle Ages?
  • A. It was popularized by a famous Renaissance painting depicting the Greek goddess of love.
  • B. It was the shape of a royal crest that symbolized marital fidelity and loyalty.
  • C. It was the shape of the silphium plant's seeds, which were used as a natural contraceptive.
  • D. It was discovered by early anatomists to be the exact shape of the human heart during emotional arousal.
Question 2 of 8
What is Takotsubo cardiomyopathy?
  • A. A deformation and weakening of the heart caused by intense emotional stress or grief.
  • B. A congenital heart defect where oxygen-rich and oxygen-poor blood mix in the ventricles.
  • C. A condition where fatty plaque suddenly ruptures, causing a massive heart attack.
  • D. A genetic disease prevalent in South Asian populations that leads to premature cardiac arrest.
Question 3 of 8
How did Werner Forssmann make a Nobel Prize-winning breakthrough in the field of cardiology in 1929?
  • A. He performed the first successful open-heart surgery on a human patient.
  • B. He threaded a catheter through his own arm vein directly into his heart.
  • C. He discovered the biological link between high cholesterol and arterial plaque.
  • D. He invented the balloon coronary angioplasty procedure to clear blocked arteries.
Question 4 of 8
What major medical obstacle did C. Walton Lillehei's 'cross-circulation' technique overcome in the 1950s?
  • A. The severe blood loss associated with operating on the ventricular septum.
  • B. The body's natural immune rejection of artificial heart valves.
  • C. The lack of imaging technology to see inside the heart before cutting it open.
  • D. The inability to safely stop the heart for more than a few minutes without causing irreversible brain damage.
Question 5 of 8
What was a primary finding of the Framingham Heart Study initiated in the 1950s?
  • A. The primary cause of heart attacks is the use of the stimulant Benzedrine.
  • B. Heart disease is almost exclusively caused by genetic factors rather than personal habits.
  • C. Lifestyle factors like smoking, high blood pressure, and cholesterol are major contributors to heart disease.
  • D. Stress, hard work, and low economic status are the only reliable predictors of cardiovascular failure.
Question 6 of 8
Why did researchers conclude that psychosocial factors strongly contribute to heart disease after studying South Asian populations and Japanese immigrants?
  • A. These groups were found to have a genetic mutation that made their hearts highly susceptible to physical stress.
  • B. These groups had high rates of heart disease despite generally having healthy diets, lower cholesterol, and lower smoking rates.
  • C. These groups lacked access to modern medical procedures like coronary angioplasty and cross-circulation surgery.
  • D. These groups consumed significantly more alcohol and nicotine than the subjects in the original Framingham Study.
Question 7 of 8
According to the text, what biological process leads to the formation of fatty plaque in the arteries?
  • A. White blood cells attempt to digest cholesterol particles but fail, depositing a damaging cholesterol paste on the artery walls.
  • B. Red blood cells clump together around artificial stents and harden into scar tissue over time.
  • C. Excess sugar in the bloodstream crystallizes and forms micro-tears in the arterial tissue, which then become infected.
  • D. The liver overproduces a specific enzyme that calcifies the inner lining of the blood vessels when exposed to oxygen.
Question 8 of 8
What revolutionary treatment did Swiss physician Andreas Gruentzig develop in the 1970s to treat clogged arteries?
  • A. Cross-circulation surgery
  • B. Coronary angiography
  • C. Balloon coronary angioplasty
  • D. The artificial pacemaker

Heart — Full Chapter Overview

Heart Summary & Overview

Heart (2018) examines an organ that has baffled humanity for centuries. By delving into the history of the heart, both from a biological and a cultural perspective, it explains why the heart plays such an important role in human history.

Who Should Listen to Heart?

  • Medical students
  • Patients with health issues affecting the heart
  • Historians of science

About the Author: Sandeep Jauhar

Sandeep Jauhar is a leading heart specialist at the Long Island Jewish Medical Center. He has also regularly contributed medical articles to the New York Times, and is the author of two other books, Doctored (2014) and Intern (2007). He lives in Long Island with his family. 

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