Coronary Artery Disease Case Study

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Coronary artery disease develops when your coronary arteries — the major blood vessels that supply your heart with blood, oxygen and nutrients — become damaged or diseased. When plaque builds up, it narrows your coronary arteries and decreases blood flow to your heart. Eventually, the decreased blood flow may cause chest pain (angina), shortness of breath, or other coronary artery disease signs and symptoms (Mayo Clinic, 2014). A complete blockage can cause a heart attack. Because coronary artery disease often develops over decades, it can go unnoticed until you have a heart attack (Mayo Clinic, 2014). Coronary artery disease is thought to begin with damage or injury to the inner layer of a coronary artery, sometimes as early as childhood. …show more content…

The doctor may suggest one or more diagnostic tests as well, including: electrocardiogram (ECG) which records electrical signals as they travel through your heart, echocardiogram uses sound waves to produce images of your heart. During an echocardiogram, your doctor can determine whether all parts of the heart wall are contributing normally to your heart 's pumping activity. A stress test will be conducted by walking on a treadmill or riding a stationary bike during an ECG. In some cases, medication to stimulate your heart may be used instead of exercise, like cardiac catheterization or angiogram, which is to view blood flow through your heart (Mayo Clinic, 2014). Your doctor may inject a special dye into your arteries (intravenously). The dye is injected into the arteries of the heart through a long, thin, flexible tube (catheter) that is threaded through an artery, usually in the leg, to the arteries in the heart (Mayo Clinic, 2014). A heart scan is then computerized tomography (CT) which is a technology used to help your doctor see calcium deposits in your arteries that can narrow the arteries. If a substantial amount of calcium is discovered, coronary artery disease may be likely and magnetic resonance angiography (MRA). This procedure uses MRI technology, often combined with an injected contrast dye, to check for areas of narrowing or blockages (Mayo Clinic,

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