Cardiology is the field of medicine that concentrates on diseases of the cardiovascular system. Cardiologists are internists who specialize in the prevention and treatment of heart disease. Their diagnoses are vital to getting you the help you need in the event of an acute myocardial infarction, the medical term for a heart attack. A doctor of cardiology doesn't work in a vacuum. She shares results of the EKGs, blood work, and other tests with her cardiology associates such as surgeons and cardiac nurses to devise the proper treatment for your condition.

Although researchers are always developing new investigative and surgical techniques, cardiology has a long history. The field dates back to the 1600s when William Harvey, an English doctor, first described how blood circulates in the body. Nearly one hundred years later, Stephen Hales advanced the field by devising a means of measuring blood pressure, one of the simple ways a cardiologist can determine your heart health. European cardiology took another step forward with the invention of the stethoscope in 1816 and the electrocardiograph (EKG) in 1903. Twentieth Century advancements in American cardiology include the development of pacemakers and the development and successful implantation of an artificial heart. The most widely known development, however, is credited to Dr. Christiaan Barnard, the South African surgeon who performed the first successful heart transplant.