According to scientific studies conducted to date, the health problem that causes the most loss of life in the world is caused by cardiovascular problems. The prevalence of factors such as wrong and unbalanced diet, sedentary lifestyle and smoking in daily life habits have increased the incidence and severity of heart-related diseases. In this direction, the most common cardiovascular problems encountered in the clinic are generally called coronary artery disease.
What is Coronary Artery Disease?
The heart is the organ responsible for providing blood circulation support to the whole body in terms of its physiological function. . In this respect, it ensures that blood reaches the blood vessels in sufficient quantity and pressure, reaching all tissues, including their own tissues, during the pulse and relaxation periods. During the heart's pumping of blood to the aorta, which is the main artery of the body, the coronary arteries located on the right and left of the heart take charge in order to provide blood circulation to its own heart muscle and other tissues. It is a condition in which the heart muscle tissue cannot perform its function and suffer tissue damage due to disruptions in the circulation of blood. In this regard, depending on the degree of insufficiency in the heart circulation, different severity and clinical manifestations may occur. The common name of all these disease tables is coronary artery disease.
In line with this explanation, the clinical pictures evaluated within the scope of coronary artery disease can be summarized as follows:
- Stable Angina pectoris; It is the general name given to the clinical picture that occurs in the development of cardiac origin (cardiac) chest pain. stable angina pectoris; The clinical symptoms originating from the heart are of short duration, not longer than 5 minutes, regress in a short time with rest and can be controlled with drugs. Unstable angina pectoris is mentioned when symptoms such as more severe chest pain are present, and when it becomes difficult to control the symptoms with rest or medication.
- Myocardial infarction: Myocardial infarction is mentioned when the symptoms of chest pain in angina type last longer than 30 minutes and tissue damage due to circulatory failure develops in the heart tissues. myocardium; while the name given to the heart muscle tissue; Infarction is called the death of cells in the tissue due to the insufficiency of the oxygen support provided with the blood circulation. In this sense, heart muscle cells begin to die due to insufficient circulation. The clinical picture, known as "heart attack" among the people, can be observed as angina pectoris due to damage to the heart tissue, or it can occur as myocardial infarction.
- Sudden cardiac death: The condition that results in the death of heart tissues due to the complete cessation of cardiac functions as a result of various mechanisms triggered by its insufficiency is called.
Causes Coronary Artery Disease?
Malnutrition, inactivity In patients with a (sedentary) lifestyle and factors such as high cholesterol, damage to the wall of the coronary arteries begins to develop. Under the influence of these new conditions in the inner part of the coronary arteries, formations called atherosclerotic plaques, popularly known as arteriosclerosis, develop. The plaques grow into the vessels over time and significantly limit the blood circulation. This leads to clot occlusion, which can result in complete occlusion of the vessel. Accordingly, while the process leading to atherosclerotic plaque results in a relatively manageable clinic such as angina pectoris; The process that starts with the rupture of the plaque and continues with coagulation can cause life-threatening coronary artery disease with myocardial infarction.
In this respect, the following factors that trigger the development of atherosclerotic plaque in the coronary vessels are considered risk factors for coronary artery disease: >High blood pressure (hypertension): Blood pressure� In cases where the pearl is higher than normal, the vessel wall may be damaged due to the application of more pressure to the coronary vessel wall. >
What are the Symptoms of Coronary Artery Disease?
With the development of circulatory failure in the heart tissues, the heart becomes more prone to coronary artery diseases. A variety of (cardiac) symptoms may occur. In this context, the following symptoms may appear in the course of coronary artery diseases:
- Compressing in the chest area; Cardiac chest pain that may radiate to the jaw, neck, stomach, left shoulder, or left arm, relieved at rest, and increased by activity
- Palpitations
- Difficulty Breathing
- Nausea-vomiting
- Confusion, weakness – fatigue and fear of death
- Sweating
- Fainting (syncope)
How is Coronary Artery Disease Treated?
In a patient with suspected coronary artery disease, first of all, a specialist doctor The diagnosis of the disease should be made by evaluation by IM. In this regard, the physician questions the history of the disease in detail and detects the signs of the disease by performing a detailed physical examination.
Methods such as electrocardiography (ECG), in which the electrical activity of the heart is measured, and echocardiography (ECHO), in which the electrical activity of the heart is measured, are widely used in coronary artery diseases. In order to detect clinical manifestations such as angina pectoris, special tests called stress test based on ECG recording during physical activity may be required. to prevent the development of crisis attacks. In this context, interventional treatment methods such as angiography may be required to be applied to patients in an emergency.
Angiography is to observe the structure of the heart vessels by entering the vascular structures of the body through the use of various dyeing agents and to eliminate the factors causing circulatory failure by methods such as stent. In more severe cases, surgical methods such as by-pass surgery may be required. Various lifestyle changes are often recommended in addition to drug therapy. In this context, the following measures are very useful in terms of protecting and improving the health of patients:
- Stop smoking and alcohol consumption,
- Performing regular exercise,
- Achieving adequate and balanced nutrition habits ,
- Reaching the ideal weight suitable for body characteristics.
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