CORONARY – INTRODUCTION
Atheroma is the condition where fatty material is laid down in the wall of an artery.
Coronary artery disease occurs when the coronary arteries which supply the heart muscle with blood are affected by this atheroma. The artery is narrowed and the smooth lining becomes irregular.
The aorta is the main artery carrying all the blood from the heart to the tissues. The coronary arteries come off the aorta just where it arises.
Coronary artery disease impairs the circulation to the heart muscle or myocardium and leads to the condition of angina. When the heart is called on to do extra work, with exertion, it requires more blood.
When the arteries are narrowed, not enough blood can flow to the muscle and it reacts to this lack of blood and therefore lack of oxygen by producing the typical chest pain.
Angina usually comes on with exertion and is relieved by rest. A coronary occlusion is when the artery is completely blocked. This may lead to the death of that portion of the heart muscle supplied by the artery — a myocardial infarct.
*275/71/1*
