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by Dr. Philip S. Chua.
August 1, 2012
What is angina pectoris?
Angina pectoris is the medical term for chest pains, more specifically pains emanating from, and involving, the heart. It is most common for people to associate chest pains with impending or insipient heart attack. The same is true within the medical community: chest pains, especially by the breastbone, are considered angina pectoris till proven otherwise.
What is the cause of angina pectoris?
Just like any muscle in the body, the myocardium (heart muscles) need oxygen and nutrition in order to “feel” comfortable, remain healthy and function well. The oxygen and nutrition are carried by blood that is circulating inside the arteries that supply all muscles, other tissues and organs throughout the body. If any of these arteries are blocked for any reason, the blood supply to the intended areas is diminished or totally cut off. The heart muscles are supplied by the coronary arteries. If these coronary arteries are blocked, the heart muscles are deprived of blood, and therefore of oxygen and nutrition, and these muscles suffer from “asphyxiation” (choking from lack of oxygen) and go into severe spasm, causing the angina pectoris.
How are these arteries blocked?
Blockages in the arteries in our body is caused by arteriosclerosis (hardening of the arteries) brought on, and/or aggravated, by several health risk factors. The main culprit ingredient is cholesterol, which mostly come from saturated fats that we eat, like red meats (pork, beef, etc.), eggs, butter, lard, dairy products, etc. Ingestion of these foods leads to high level of the bad cholesterol, which thickens the blood consistency, which leads to thick cholesterol “paint” deposits on the inside walls of the tiny coronary arteries, which are only 1 to 3 millimeters in diameter, like the size of a round toothpick. This situation is like using thick paint applied layers after layers, every second, day after day, year after year, onto the inner walls of these tiny pipes. Just like the sewer or drain pipes in our homes, this cholesterol “junk” could clog up our coronary arteries, as small as they are.
When does a heart attack occur?
Myocardial Infarction (Heart Attack) occurs when the heart muscles are deprived of the amount of blood they need to maintain normal tissue oxygenation and nutrition. Since this blood supply to the heart muscles is provided by the coronary arteries, heart attack will result when the coronary arteries are severely blocked due to the reasons and causes explained above. Since muscles are nothing but flesh or meat, they rot or decay when blood supply is cut off for more than a few minutes, resulting in muscle damage.
How do we minimize these risk factors?
The most effective way to minimize these risk factors is by living a healthy life style, which includes the following: (1) abstinence from tobacco; (2) eating fish, vegetables nuts, and fruits (high fiber foods); (3) staying away from eggs and red meat (pork, beef and anything made of them), fried foods, lard, butter, excessive dairy products; (4) excess alcohol is poison but drinking a glass or two of red wine with meals is good for the heart so long as your physician does not find any contraindication in your case; (5) doing daily exercises (walking, ballroom dancing, etc); (6) vitamin E and aspirin as prescribed by your physicians; (7) savoring life and managing stress with meditation, yoga, soothing music, frequent mini-vacations or breaks, and doing other activities that give you joy, inner peace and personal satisfaction.
So, how is blockage of the arteries diagnosed?
For coronary artery stenosis (blockage), a practically painless dye test called coronary arteriogram or angiogram (also known as heart catheterization) is the best way to find out if there are any stenoses in the coronary arteries. This is considered the “supreme court” of heart tests, because it is the final “arbiter” to say 100% if the arteries are blocked or not. This test also gives good information on the condition of the heart muscles and its contraction. Cardiac cath is done routinely, dozens a day in some centers, for more than 35 years, and is a very safe procedure. Before angiogram is performed, the physician may order some blood tests and a Thallium Stress Test.
If blockages are found, then what?
To prevent heart attack, the blockages should either be opened with angioplasty balloon stent placement, if they are still amenable to this simpler and less invasive procedure. However, if the blockages are multiple and severe and not manageable with angioplasty, then the next prudent option to ward off heart attack is coronary bypass surgery. Thanks to modern technology, today, these wonderful life-saving procedures are available in many centers, performed by super specialists in invasive and non-invasive cardiology, and cardiac surgeons trained in standard cardiovascular surgery and in minimally invasive beating-heart surgery.
Obviously, the best “treatment” is prevention, through healthy lifestyle.
For more info, please visit philipSchua.com
Email: scalpel[pen@gmail.com