Coronary Artery Disease



Coronary Artery Disease

Introduction

Coronary artery disease or atherosclerosis coronary is characterized by narrowing of the blood vessels that supply blood to the heart. This condition is due to thickening of the inner layer of the artery mostly because of plaque buildup. In the human anatomy, there are two main arteries: a right coronary and a left coronary artery. Coronary artery disease arguably became common after the Industrial Revolution due to the transformation of a society and its largely rural structure. These structures conditioned to hard work and made everybody physically active, whereas in a population accustomed to urban lifestyle. These individuals wanted to increased comfort and office based vocations. This resulted in high rate of inactivity. The coronary heart disease is the most common disease in American society today. More than one million individuals experience a heart attack and more than half a million die annually.

Discussion

Pathology of the Disease

Coronary atherosclerosis develops gradually, due to deposits of fat, cholesterol, calcium, collagen and other materials that will be deposited on the walls of the arteries by restricting the flow of blood. Sometimes a fissure, laceration or rupture of a plaque allows the blood to penetrate inside, forming a clot that can grow and detach the artery, causing an infraction. This thrombosis or infraction produced by a plate is the main reason that results in sudden or acute cardiovascular pains (MFMER, 2012).

The inner layer of the coronary artery is crucial for the formation of athermanous plaques. It is protected by a thin layer of fibrous tissue, called the endothelium. When the endothelium is damaged there is a proliferation of smooth muscle cells inside the arteries to cover the lesion. These cells, when in contact with the cholesterol from the LDL, can initiate an inflammatory reaction and formation of fatty streaks or ...