1 Importance of cardiovascular diseases for morbidity and mortality.- 2 History taking and physical examination.- 2.1 History.- 2.2 Physical examination.- 2.2.1 Inspection, palpation, percussion.- 2.2.2 Blood-pressure measurement.- 2.2.3 Auscultation.- 2.2.4 Documentation.- 3 Cardiovascular testing (except exercise testing, see 4.2.2).- 3.1 Electrocardiography.- 3.2 Phonocardiography, pulse-wave recordings.- 3.3 Echocardiography.- 3.4 Indicator dye dilution method.- 3.5 Radiologic examination of the thorax.- 3.6 Determination of the heart volume.- 3.6.1 Diagnostic importance and physiological adaption of the heart volume.- 3.6.2 Subtraction angiography.- 3.7 Nuclear imaging techniques (see also 4.2.3).- 3.7.1 Radionuclide ventriculography.- 3.7.2 Thallium scintigraphy.- 3.8 Computed tomography, positron emission tomography, nuclear magnetic resonance.- 3.9 Cardiac catheterization.- 3.10 Cardiovascular measurements.- 4 Atherosclerosis.- 4.1 Coronary heart disease.- 4.1.1 Definition.- 4.1.2 Pathophysiology.- 4.1.3 Coronary arteries.- 4.1.4 Collaterals.- 4.1.5 Development of coronary artery stenoses.- 4.1.6 Implications of coronary heart disease, risk factors, progression.- 4.1.7 Prognosis.- 4.2 Diagnosis.- 4.2.1 History and physical examination.- 4.2.2 Exercise ECG.- 4.2.3 Nuclear imaging techniques.- 4.2.4 Coronary arteriography.- 4.3 Clinical course of angina pectoris.- 4.3.1 Stable angina pectoris.- 4.3.2 Unstable angina.- 4.3.3 Angina pectoris at rest.- 4.4 Differential diagnosis of angina pectoris, cardiac and non-cardiac chest pain.- 4.5 Therapy of angina pectoris.- 4.5.1 General measures.- 4.5.2 Antianginal drug therapy, thrombosis prophylaxis.- 4.5.3 Pharmacodynamics of antianginal agents.- 4.5.4 Surgical and angioplasty revascularization.- 4.6 Myocardial infarction.- 4.6.1 Definition, classification.- 4.6.2 Development of myocardial infarction.- 4.6.3 Pathologic, angiographic and angioscopic findings.- 4.6.4 Clinical manifestations.- 4.6.5 Diagnosis.- 4.6.6 Therapeutic interventions and diagnostic procedures in acute myocardial infarction.- 4.6.7 Complicated myocardial infarction, ventricular aneurysm.- 4.6.8 Cardiac rehabilitation, diagnostic procedures after infarction.- 4.6.9 Non-transmural myocardial infarction.- 4.6.10 Cardiac rehabilitation.- 4.6.11 Psychologic support of post-infarct patients.- 4.6.12 General lifestyle, chronic drug therapy.- 5 Inflammatory cardiac disorders.- 5.1 Endocarditis.- 5.1.1 Bacterial endocarditis.- 5.1.2 Rheumatic endocarditis.- 5.1.3 Rare manifestations of endocarditis.- 5.2 Myocarditis, pericarditis.- 6 Aortic disorders.- 6.1 Inflammatory diseases of the aorta, luetic, and Takayasu’s aortitis.- 6.2 Aortic aneurysms.- 7 Cardiac valvular disorders.- 7.1 Importance, classification, and etiology.- 7.2 Mitral stenosis.- 7.2.1 Etiology.- 7.2.2 Pathophysiology.- 7.2.3 Clinical manifestations and course.- 7.2.4 Treatment.- 7.3 Mitralinsufficiency.- 7.3.1 Etiology.- 7.3.2 Clinical manifestations.- 7.3.3 Clinical course, therapy.- 7.3.4 Anticoagulation in mitral valve disorders.- 7.4 Aortic stenosis.- 7.4.1 Occurrence, etiology.- 7.4.2 Clinical manifestations.- 7.4.3 Clinical course, therapy.- 7.4.4 Indications for surgery and surgical methods.- 7.5 Aortic insufficiency.- 7.5.1 Etiology.- 7.5.2 Clinical manifestations.- 7.5.3 Clinical course, therapy.- 7.6 Pulmonary valve disorders.- 7.6.1 Etiology.- 7.6.2 Pathology, pathophysiology.- 7.6.3 Clinical manifestations.- 7.6.4 Therapy.- 7.7 Tricuspid stenosis.- 7.7.1 Pathology, pathophysiology, occurrence.- 7.7.2 Clinical manifestations, management.- 7.8 Tricuspid insufficiency.- 7.8.1 Occurrence, etiology.- 7.8.2 Clinical manifestations, management.- 8 Congenital anomalies of the heart and great vessels.- 8.1 Atrial septal defect.- 8.1.1 Pathology,pathophysiology, occurrence.- 8.1.2 Clinical manifestations, course, management.- 8.2 Ventricular septal defect.- 8.2.1 Pathology, pathophysiology, occurrence.- 8.2.2 Clinical manifestations, course, management.- 8.3 Coarctation of the aorta.- 8.3.1 Pathology.- 8.3.2 Clinical course.- 8.3.3 Clinical manifestations.- 8.3.4 Therapy.- 8.4 Patent ductus arteriosus.- 8.4.1 Occurrence, pathology.- 8.4.2 Clinical manifestations.- 8.4.3 Therapy.- 8.5 Fallot’s tetralogy.- 8.5.1 Pathology.- 8.5.2 Clinical manifestations.- 8.5.3 Therapy.- 8.6 Transposition of the great arteries.- 8.7 Ebstein’s anomaly.- 9 Myocardial diseases (except myocarditis, see 5.2).- 9.1 Terminology, etiology, classification.- 9.1.1 Pathology, pathogenesis, pathophysiology.- 9.2 Dilated cardiomyopathy.- 9.2.1 Definition, occurrence.- 9.2.2 Pathology, pathogenesis, pathophysiology.- 9.2.3 Clinical manifestations.- 9.2.4 Therapy.- 9.3 Hypertrophic form of myocardial disease — Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy.- 9.3.1 Definition.- 9.3.2 Occurrence, pathology, pathogenesis.- 9.3.3 Pathophysiology.- 9.3.4 Clinical course.- 9.3.5 Clinical manifestations.- 9.3.6 Therapy.- 9.4 Restrictive cardiomyopathies.- 10 Systemic and pulmonary hypertension.- 10.1 Systemic hypertension.- 10.1.1 Definition of high blood pressure.- 10.1.2 Pathogenesis.- 10.1.3 Manifestations of blood pressure elevation.- 10.1.4 Clinical manifestations.- 10.1.5 Therapeutic principles, general measures.- 10.1.5.1 Drug therapy.- 10.1.5.1.1 Calcium antagonists.- 10.1.5.1.2 ?-receptor blocking agents.- 10.1.5.1.3 ?-blocking agents, peripheral vasodilators.- 10.1.5.1.4 Clonidine and methyldopa.- 10.1.5.1.5 Angiqtensin converting-enzyme (ACE) inhibitors.- 10.1.5.1.6 Diuretics.- 10.1.5.2 Management of hypertensive crisis.- 10.2 Pulmonary hypertension.- 10.2.1 Etiology, clinical course.- 10.2.2 Clinical manifestations.- 10.2.3 Treatment.- 11 Disorders of circulatory regulation.- 11.1 Hyperkinetic and hypertensive regulatory disorders.- 11.1.1 Definition.- 11.1.2 Occurrence.- 11.1.3 Pathogenesis.- 11.1.4 Clinical manifestations.- 11.1.5 Differential diagnosis, prognosis.- 11.1.6 Therapy.- 11.2 Hypodynamic and hypotonic circulatory disorders, hypotension.- 11.2.1 Definition.- 11.2.2 Clinical manifestations.- 11.2.3 Therapy.- 11.3 Hyperventilation, pseudo dyspnoe.- 12 Cardiac arrhythmias.- 12.1 Classification.- 12.1.1 Classification by underlying disease.- 12.1.2 Classification by heart rate.- 12.1.3 Classification by occurrence.- 12.1.4 Classification by need for therapy.- 12.2 Diagnostic procedures.- 12.2.1 Electrocardiography.- 12.2.2 Holter monitoring.- 12.2.3 Ergometry, exercise electrocardiography.- 12.2.4 His bundle electrocardiography.- 12.2.5 Sinus node recovery time.- 12.2.6 Programmed stimulation.- 12.2.7 Intracardiac mapping.- 12.3 Ventricular extrasystoles, ventricular tachycardia, ventricular fibrillation.- 12.3.1 Clinical manifestations.- 12.3.2 Therapy.- 12.4 Supraventricular extrasystoles, atrial fibrillation and flutter, paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardia.- 12.4.1 Therapy.- 12.5 Bradyarrhythmias.- 12.5.1 Definition, occurrence, manifestations.- 12.5.2 Therapy, pacemakers.- 12.6 Intraventricular conduction disorders.- 12.7 WPW, LGL, and long QT syndromes.- 13 Cardiac failure.- 13.1 Definition, classification.- 13.2 Clinical manifestations.- 13.3 Therapy.- 14 Cardiovascular disorders and sports.- 14.1 Relation between structure and function of the heart, adaptation to increased exercise.- 14.2 Measurement of physical exercise capacity, exercise methods, and measurement targets.- 14.3 Risk of sport.- 14.4 Sports for the healthy.- 14.5 Physical rehabilitation therapy, sport and atherosclerosis, sport in modern society.- References for further reading.