Causes
The causes of cardiomegaly are not well understood and many cases of cardiomegaly have no known cause. Prevention of cardiomegaly starts with detection. If a person has a family history of cardiomegaly, one should let ones doctor know so that treatments can be implemented to help prevent the worsening of the condition. In addition, prevention includes avoiding certain lifestyle risk factors such as tobacco use and controlling ones high cholesterol, high blood pressure, and diabetes. Non-lifestyle risk factors include a family history of cardiomegaly, coronary artery disease (CAD), congenital heart failure, atherosclerotic disease, valvular heart disease, exposure to cardiac toxins, sleep-disordered breathing (such as sleep apnea), sustained cardiac arrhythmias, abnormal electrocardiograms, and cardiomegaly on chest X-ray. Lifestyle factors that can help prevent cardiomegaly include eating a healthy diet, controlling blood pressure, exercise, medications, and not abusing alcohol and cocaine. Current research and the evidence of previous cases link the following (below) as possible causes of cardiomegaly.The most common known causes of cardiomegaly are congenital (patients are born with the condition based on a genetic inheritance), high blood pressure (which can enlarge the left ventricle causing the heart muscle to weaken over time), and coronary artery disease.
Hyposmia, or microsmia, is a reduced ability to smell and to detect odors. A related condition is anosmia, in which no odors can be detected. Some of the causes of olfaction problems are allergies, nasal polyps, viral infections and head trauma. In 2012 an estimated 9.8 million people aged 40 and older in the United States had hyposmia and an additional 3.4 million had anosmia/severe hyposmia.Hyposmia might be a very early sign of Parkinsons disease. Hyposmia is also an early and almost universal finding in Alzheimers disease and dementia with Lewy bodies. Lifelong hyposmia could be caused by Kallmann syndrome or Autism Spectrum Disorder. Along with other chemosensory disturbances, hyposmia can be a key indicator of COVID-19. Epidemiology
The National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) collected data on chemosensory function (taste and smell) in a nationally-representative sample of US civilian, non-institutionalized persons in 2012. Olfactory function was assessed on persons aged 40 years and older with an 8-item, odor identification test (Pocket Smell Tests™, Sensonics, Inc., Haddon Heights, NJ). Odors included food odors (strawberry, chocolate, onion, grape), warning odors (natural gas, smoke) and household odors (leather, soap). Olfactory function score was based on the number of correct identifications. Prevalence (%) of anosmia/severe hyposmia (scores 0 to 3) was 0.3 at age 40-49 rising to 14.1 at age 80+. Prevalence of hyposmia (scores 4 to 5) was much higher: 3.7% at age 40-49 and 25.9% at 80+. Both were more prevalent in individuals of African descent than in those of Caucasian descent.