Coronary Heart Disease (CHD)

Coronary Heart Disease (CHD), or coronary artery disease, develops when the coronary arteries become too narrow. Coronary arteries are blood vessels that supply oxygen and blood to the heart.

CHD tends to develop when cholesterol accumulates on the artery walls, creating plaques. These plaques cause narrowing of the arteries, reducing blood flow to the heart. Sometimes a clot can obstruct the blood flow, causing serious health problems.

The coronary arteries form the network of blood vessels on the surface of the heart that supplies it with oxygen. If these arteries shrink, the heart may not receive enough oxygen-rich blood, especially during physical activity. Coronary heart disease can sometimes cause a heart attack.

Symptoms of Coronary Heart Disease

If the coronary arteries shrink, they cannot supply enough oxygen-rich blood to the heart, especially when fighting hard, as during exercise. Initially, the reduction in blood flow cannot cause symptoms of coronary heart disease. As plaque continues to accumulate in the coronary arteries, however, it is possible to develop signs and symptoms of coronary artery disease, including:

Chest Pain (Angina)

You may feel pressure or tightness in your chest, as if someone were sitting on your chest. This pain is known as angina, mostly occurs in the middle or left side of the chest. Angina is usually triggered by physical or emotional stress. Pain usually disappears within a few minutes after interruption of stressful activity. In some people, particularly women, this pain may be transient or acute and may be felt in the neck, arm or back.

Heart Attack

A completely blocked coronary artery will cause a heart attack. The classic signs and symptoms of a heart attack include overwhelming chest pressure and shoulder or arm pain, sometimes with breathing and sweating.

Shortness of Breath 

If your heart cannot pump enough blood to meet your body's needs, you can develop extreme breathing or fatigue with effort.

Women are a little more likely than men to experience signs and symptoms that are less typical of a heart attack, such as pain in the neck or jaw. Sometimes a heart attack occurs without apparent signs or symptoms

Causes of Coronary Heart Disease

Coronary artery disease is thought to begin with the deterioration or injury of the inner layer of a coronary artery, sometimes already in infancy. Damage can be caused by various factors, including:

• Smoke
• High blood pressure
• High cholesterol
• Diabetes or insulin resistance
• Sedentary lifestyle

Once the inner wall of an artery is damaged, fat deposits from cholesterol and other cellular waste products tend to accumulate at the site of the lesion in a process called atherosclerosis. If the surface of the plate breaks or breaks, the blood cells called platelets cling to the point to try to repair the artery. This agglomerate can block the artery, causing a heart attack.

Complications

Chest Pain (Angina) 

When the coronary arteries shrink, your heart cannot receive enough blood when the demand is higher, especially during physical activity. This can cause angina.

Heart Failure 

If some areas of your heart are chronically lacking in oxygen and nutrients due to low blood flow or your heart has been damaged by a heart attack, your heart may become too weak to pump enough blood to meet the needs of the heart. your body. This condition is known as heart failure.

Abnormal Heart Rhythm (Arrhythmia)

An insufficient supply of blood to the heart or damage to heart tissue can interfere with the electrical impulses of the heart, causing abnormal heart rhythms.

Heart Attack

If a cholesterol plaque breaks and a blood clot forms, the complete blockage of the cardiac artery can trigger a heart attack. Lack of blood flow in the heart can affect the heart muscle. The amount of the damage depends in part on how quickly the treatment is received.

Risk Factors of Coronary Heart Disease

Age. Simple aging increases the risk of damaged and restricted arteries.

Family History. A family history of heart disease is associated with an increased risk of coronary heart disease, especially if a close relative has developed heart disease at an early age. The risk is greater if your father or brother has been diagnosed with heart disease before age 55 or if your mother or sister developed it before age 65.

Smoke. People who smoke have a significantly higher risk of heart disease. Exposure of others to passive smoking also increases the risk of coronary heart disease.

High Blood Pressure. Uncontrolled hypertension can lead to hardening and thickening of the arteries, narrowing the channel through which blood can flow.

High Blood Cholesterol Levels. High cholesterol levels in the blood can increase the risk of plaque formation and atherosclerosis. High cholesterol can be caused by high levels of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL), known as "bad" cholesterol. A low level of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL), known as "good" cholesterol, can also contribute to the development of atherosclerosis.

Diabetes. Diabetes is associated with an increased risk of coronary heart disease. Type 2 diabetes and coronary heart disease have similar risk factors, such as obesity and hypertension.

Obesity. Being overweight usually aggravates other risk factors.

Lack of Physical Activity. Lack of exercise is also associated with coronary heart disease and some of its risk factors.

High Stress. The unrelenting stress in your life can affect your arteries and the aggravation of other risk factors for coronary heart disease.

Unhealthy Diet. Eating too much food with high amounts of saturated fat, trans fat, salt and sugar can increase the risk of coronary heart disease.

Sex. In general, men are at greater risk of coronary heart disease. However, the risk for women increases after menopause.

  How to Prevent Coronary Heart Disease

The same lifestyle habits that can help treat coronary heart disease can also help prevent its development. Leading a healthy lifestyle can help keep your plaque arteries strong and clear. To improve the health of your heart, you can:

• Stop smoking
• Control conditions such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol and diabetes
• Stay physically active
• Follow a low-fat, low salt diet
• Maintain a healthy weight
• Reduce and manage stress

Treatment

The following surgical procedures can open or replace blocked arteries if they become very narrow or if the properties do not respond to drugs:

Laser Surgery

It involves some very small holes in the heart muscle. They encourage the formation of new blood vessels.

Coronary Bypass Surgery

A surgeon uses a blood vessel from another part of the body to create a graft that avoids the blocked artery. The graph may come from the foot, for example, or from the inner artery wall of the breast.

Stent Placement

A catheter surgeon inserts the narrow section of the artery and inserts a deflation balloon through the catheter into the affected area. When he tells the balloon, it compresses the fat deposits on the artery walls. They can leave a stent tube or mesh in the artery to keep it open.

Sometimes a person needs a heart transplant. However, this is not only if the heart has serious injuries and if the treatment does not work.