Coronary heart disease is an organic and functional damage in the myocarditis. Pathological and acute state is provoked by insufficient blood flow or by lack of the blood flow altogether. Coronary heart disease is dangerous to life and health. It can cause instantaneous death, therefore upon uncovering any symptoms one must consult a doctor as soon as possible.
Causes of development of the coronary heart disease
One of the main reasons for the emerging pathology is the atherosclerosis of the coronary artery expressed as narrowing or occlusion of the vessel lumen by a cholesterol plaque. Coronary heart disease may also emerge as a consequence of thromboembolism or a coronary spasm.
Metabolic disorders, long term arterial hypertension (without medical correction), dyslipidemia, diabetes, consuming fatty foods, smoking and alcohol abuse increase the risk of coronary heart disease.
Symptoms
Early signs of the pathology may be shortness of breath (initially occurring during physical exercise, and later, during rest), heartbeat spikes, pain. The condition progresses along. Patients may complain of expressed pain behind the sternum and transmitting the the pain into the back, hand, the neck, and even the bottom jaw. The episodes may last up to 20 minutes, and may be stopped by administering nitroglycerin.
Diagnostics
To diagnose the coronary heart disease, a full scale instrumental and laboratory test set must be performed. Laboratory diagnostic tests include blood and urine analysis, blood biochemistry and coagulation profile. Sometimes, specific tests are also takento differentiate the pathology.
Imagingresearchtests:
- Electrocardiography (ECG) enables the analysis of heart contractions frequency and rhythm. During this test, the doctor compares the results against the normal ones and decides on whether there may be a pathological condition. ECG can also help reveal the type of coronary heart disease
- Coronarography is a very effective, but invasive test. During diagnostics, a lead in inserted into the organism to pass from the femoral artery under x-ray control. Allabnormalitiesarevisualizedusing a contrastmedium.
- Echocardiography is an ultrasound method of study of the heart and coronary vessels condition. It may help discover not only the coronary heart disease itself, but also the factors causing its development.
- Effort tests are performed for differential diagnosis of the coronary heart disease, as well as other pathologies and forms. Such diagnostics helps discover how well a patient can handle physical exercises, establish whether the assigned therapy is effective, and provide expert evaluation of whether the patient is fit to work.
- Scintiscanning is a method that helps define factors and risks of development for the coronary heart disease.
If the blood flow to the heart is not restored on time, this may lead to a myocardial infarction, when a part of the heart muscle dies from lack of oxygen. Myocardial infarction is a serious complication associated with coronary heart disease. It may be caused by thrombosis from within coronary arteries, or spasms inside them.
Treatment
Treatment depends on the level of progression of the disease. It may include change in life habits, use of medical drugs, and surgery, including angioplasty and bypass surgery.
Besides the traditional ways of treatment, it is very important to implement proactive measures for cardiovascular disease, such as a healthy lifestyle, refraining from smoking and alcohol, correct nutrition management and regular physical activities.