Heart Attack Causes.
Basically, the cause of heart attack or cause of myocardial infarction (as heart attack is called) is blockage of the coronary artery. The coronary arteries run on the surface of the heart and are relatively narrow, thereby being more prone to blockage. Here, we shall discuss what causes this blockage and what are the predisposing factors.
Cause of Heart Attack.
Atherosclerosis: This is the main cause of blockage of the coronary artery which causes a heart attack. In patients with higher than normal levels of cholesterol in the blood, there is a tendency for the cholesterol to get deposited on the inner walls of the arteries. Cholesterol is a wax like substance and sticks to inner walls of the arteries, forming a plaque. A plaque is a flat plate-like or flat tablet-like substance. This is called Coronary artery disease (CAD).
This plaque formation increases gradually with time and decreases the lumen of the artery. This results in decreased blood flow to the part supplied by the affected artery. The outer surface of the plaque is hard, which later cracks and breaks, releasing in the process, a clot. This clot blocks the lumen of the artery and the blood flow gets blocked. The affected part begins to die and forms an infarct.
Picture showing cause of heart attack.
Predisposing Factors of a Heart Attack.
High levels of cholesterol, which directly cause atherosclerosis, are associated with patients with
- Hypertension,
- Diabetes,
- in persons who smoke cigarettes.
Hypertension is the No 1 cause, while smoking is the No 2 cause for a heart attack.
- Drugs such as cocaine cause spasm of the blood vessels, which in turn reduces the blood supply. An over dose can be lethal.
Cause of a heart attack is therefore, basically due to deprivation of blood supply to the heart.
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