Coronary Artery Disease

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Coronary artery disease is a life threatening condition that affects millions of people. It was one of the leading causes of death in America. Also known as artherosclerotic heart disease, this is the condition of an accumulation of plaque along the arterial walls that supply the myocardium, or muscles of the heart. The most common symptom of CAD is chest pain which is caused by the heart not getting enough blood. Fatigue and shortness of breath are also common symptoms. There are several ways to treat CAD. Consuming a small dosage of aspirin daily thins the blood and prevents clots in the arteries. This is important because the arterial walls have become narrow from the plaque build up making the passage of blood very difficult. Plaque is made up of fat, cholesterol, calcium and other substances that are found in the blood. Over time, the lack of oxygen supplied to the heart muscles can cause heart failure. Smokers have a much greater chance of plaque build up then non smokers. CAD is diagnosed in several ways. Electrocardiograms are done to check the flow of electricity through the heart, blood work is done to check cholesterol levels and a stress test is done to check the hearts ability to maintain homeostasis under extreme physical stress. Other then taking aspirin to thin the blood, other medications are offered and prescribed to prevent the continual thickening of the arteries.

The Coronary Arteries

In addition to the heart having pathways to supply the entire body with nutrients and oxygen, it also supplies itself with the oxygenated blood. The heart is composed of muscles and therefore needs to same amount of oxygen and proteins as the rest of the muscles in the body. The coronary arteries supply the heart with what it needs to stay functional. There are two main coronary arteries which branch from the Aorta. The right coronary artery supplies the right atrium and the right ventricle along with the bottom half of both ventricles and the back of the septum. The entire right side of the heart is supplied by the right coronary artery. The left coronary artery supplies blood to the circumflex artery which sends it to the left atrium and side and back of the left ventricle. It also moves from through the left anterior descending artery which supplies the front and bottom of the left ventricle and the front of the septum.

Divisions of the Heart

The human heart is divided into four main chambers. The right and left atrium and the right and left ventricle work together to pump blood throughout the body and supply nutrients and oxygen to all organs. Blood flows into the heart through the superior vena cava into the right atrium. The right atrium is larger then the left atrium and has much thinner muscle walls due to its stronger need to pump the blood further in the body then any other compartment of the heart. The blood that flows into the heart from the vena cava is blood that has already traveled through the body and dispersed nutrients and oxygen to the organs. The blood then travels through the coronary sinus and tricuspid valve into the right ventricle. The right ventricle pumps the blood out of the heart and into the lungs in order to be re oxygenated. Once the blood has traveled through the lungs and has been resupplied of oxygen it then travels through the pulmonary veins back to the heart into the left atrium. The left atrium is much smaller then the right atrium because it does not need as much strength to pump the blood through the body. Once the left atrium fills with blood, the bicuspid valve opens in a one way direction and allows the blood to flow into the left ventricle. The left ventricle then contracts and sends the blood out of the heart and into the rest of the body. The blood travels the full extent of the body through the arteries and capillaries and passes into the veins which return the blood back into the heart to start the cycle over again. The heart pumps the blood in this continuous cycle to keep the body alive.