Coronary Heart Disease
Medical Author:
Vibhuti N Singh, MD, MPH, FACC, FSCAI
Medical Editor:
Alan D Forker, MD
Medical Editor:
Francisco Talavera, PharmD, PhD
Medical Editor:
Michael E Zevitz, MD
Coronary Heart Disease OverviewCoronary heart disease (CHD), also called coronary artery disease, affects about 14 million men and women in the United States. Disease develops when a combination of fatty material, calcium, and scar tissue (plaque) builds up in the arteries that supply the heart with blood. Through these arteries, called the coronary arteries, the heart muscle (myocardium) gets the oxygen and other nutrients it needs topump blood.
The heart consists of 4 chambers: an atrium and a ventricle on the right, and an atrium and ventricle on the left.
The pumping, or contraction, of the left ventricle must be very powerful because that is what keeps the blood flowing throughout the body.
The heart has 3 major coronary arteries.
As a child, the inner lining of the coronary arteries is quite smooth, allowing blood to flow easily. As a person ages, the cholesterol and calcium content in the walls of the coronary arteries increases, making them thicker and less elastic.
Plaque is like a firm shell with a soft inner core containing cholesterol. As blood hits it during each heartbeat, the plaque may crack open and expose its inner cholesterol core, which promotes blood clotting. Clots may further reduce blood flow, causing severe pain (angina), or even block it all together. Viewer Comments & ReviewsCoronary Heart Disease - CausesThe eMedicineHealth physician editors ask:What was the cause of your coronary heart disease? |
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The heart is a muscle like any other in the body. Arteries supply it with oxygen-rich blood so that it can contract and push blood to the rest of the body. When there isn't enough oxygen flow to a muscle, its function begins to suffer. Block the oxygen supply completely, and the muscle starts to die.
- Heart muscle gets its blood supply from arteries that originate in the aorta just as it leaves the heart.
- The coronary arteries run along the surface of the heart and supply oxygen-rich blood to the heart muscle.
- The right coronary artery supplies the right ventricle of the heart and the inferior (lower) portion of the left ventricle.
- The left anterior descending coronary artery supplies the majority of the left ventricle, while the circumflex artery supplie...
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