Coronary Artery Disease – One Type of Heart Disease

Coronary Artery Disease is one type of heart disease.  Angina (temporary chest pain) and heart attacks (acute myocardial infarctions) are types of coronary artery disease.

Coronary artery disease involves a narrowing of the coronary arteries, which are the arteries that supply the heart muscle with blood and oxygen. Just like other parts of your body require oxygen-rich blood, so does your heart.  These coronary arteries are found on the surface of the heart.  Blood should flow easily through the blood vessels without obstruction.  However,  plaque, which is made up of sticky fatty deposits and other materials, can build up inside the arteries.  This causes the arteries to decrease in their inner diameter and get narrower or get blocked.   This narrowing can happen in any of your body’s arteries, but it is called coronary artery disease when the plaque is found in your coronary (heart) arteries.  When you hear the term atherosclerosis used, it is referring to the narrowing of the arteries by the plaque.  Another descriptive term that you may hear is called, hardening of the arteries.

Unfortunately, people are developing atherosclerosis, or plaque build-up in their arteries, at younger and younger ages.  It is something that begins in childhood, and increases as you age.  Our western diets and increase in stressful lives are partly to blame.

As atherosclerosis develops in the coronary arteries, it can result in angina.  This is the temporary reduction of blood flow to the heart.  It is a warning sign that often occurs when you are in a stressful situation, and indicates that your heart is not getting enough blood and oxygen.

If you end up with a complete blockage in your coronary arteries due to atherosclerosis, it can result in a heart attack (myocardial infarction or MI for short).  In this case, there is no blood supply or oxygen at all that is getting to the heart, and can result in damage and death to part of the heart muscle.

Watch future posts for more detailed information about angina and heart attack, recognizing the signs and symptoms, and the differences between both.