What is Coronary Artery Disease?
Coronary artery disease, is an accumulation of plaques (fatty material and calcium) in the blood vessels which supply blood to the heart muscle.
The plaques inside the coronary arteries narrow the size of the arteries and slow or even stop blood flow to the heart muscle. If the artery is completely blocked the heart muscle that it supplies will die. If the artery is only narrowed, the heart muscle may be oxygen starved and cause chest pain (angina). Too little oxygen going to the heart muscle may be aggravated by physical activity that increases the work that the heart is doing. Another problem that occurs when the heart muscle is getting too little oxygen is abnormal heart rhythms. When the heart is starved for oxygen it can’t pump blood as well as it normally would. If a very abnormal heart rhythm develops this can also interfere with the heart’s pumping action. Severe cases of blocked coronary arteries result in death.
Heart disease accounts for about 650,000 deaths in the US each year..
Coronary artery disease is caused by a combination of inherited traits and lifestyle habits.
Risk factors for coronary disease include:
- A family history of coronary disease.
- Smoking
- High fat diets
- lack of physical exercise
Symptoms of coronary artery disease include:
- Sudden cardiac arrest
- chest pain
- arm pain on the left side
- fatigue
- abdominal pain in the upper abdomen
- an irregular heart rate
