Understanding some Heart changing terms

We recently have written articles about research taking place on the cardiovascular improving properties of certain traditional ingredients.  Traditional ingredients like Cardamom, amongst others, are key ingredients in the Ayurvedic beverages produced by InnOrbit and can have positive health benefits on heart and blood health.

There are a couple of terms that probably need some extra explanation and that are implicated in Cardiovascular health.


1. Fibrinogen is explained very well by Dr Jeremy Kaslow here and summarised below:

Fibrinogen is:

• a protein found in the blood that plays a key role in clotting.  
• a sticky coagulant that appears to significantly increase the risk of experiencing one of the leading causes of death and disability - stroke.
• a powerful predictor of a "stroke" (when measured in the blood).

"Fibrinogen's association with increased mortality is probably directly related to its ability to promote thromboses, or clots, by causing platelets to clump inside blood vessels.  This is one of the main mechanisms underlying ischemia and heart attack. Exercise, quitting smoking, and certain medications have been shown to lower fibrinogen in the short term." Dr J. Kaslow

2. Fibrinolysis is the  the process by which a fibrin clot (the product of coagulation) is broken down. The enzyme plasmin hydrolyses the fibrin mesh at various places, leading to the production of circulating fragments that are cleaved by other proteases and eliminated.

Fibrinolytic drugs are often given after a heart attack to dissolve the plaque blocking the coronary artery.

Antifibrinolytics, such as aminocaproic acid (ε-aminocaproic acid) and tranexamic acid are used as inhibitors of fibrinolysis. Their application may be beneficial in patients with hyperfibrinolysis because they arrest bleeding rapidly if the other components of the haemostatic system are not severely affected.

"There are a number of assay for measuring fibrinogen levels in plasma  although in practice most laboratories use the Clauss method - A functional assay based upon the time for fibrin clot formation"

Check out the excellent Khan Academy tutorial on how the heart works and how heart attacks and heart failure occurs...at THIS LINK.