Signs and Symptoms of Coronary Atherosclerosis - Essay Example

College Coronary atherosclerosis is a disease that is caused blocking of the heart arteries due to fat deposition. These deposits make the arterial wall to be narrow. As this channel becomes narrower, the flow of blood is affected and becomes very slow. This will affect the oxygen transportation in the heart arteries. This narrowness of the arteries can occur anywhere in the body but it is very dangerous when it occurs in the delicate organs like the brain, heart or the brain’s blood vessels (Arampatzis, 2004). Etiology Arteries are made up endothelium, which is the inner layer, elastic membrane layer, connective tissue layer and a smooth muscle layer. The elastic membrane is responsible for arteries expansion and contraction that allows blood to flow through them. Therefore, atherosclerosis is a disease that is occurs when the arteries are block by some deposits. These deposits may include fats, calcium, or cholesterol that gives room for blood clotting. These deposits stimulate the arterial cells to produce some harmful substances that are going to accumulate in the inner layers of the arteries. Connective tissues are formed on the cells due to the fat deposition. As the formation of these connective tissues increases, the arteries thicken and the internal channels are reduced in the size. This reduction in the internal diameter of the arteries makes the flow of oxygen delivery very low due to the slow flow of blood. This slow speed in oxygen delivery causes blood clotting. This blood clotting will cause endothelium damage. At this point, the victim is at very dangerous situation because it can result to heart attack, stroke or kidney failure (Fuster, Ross, & Topol, 2002). However, endothelium damage has been associated with very many causes. Some of the causes are referred to as non-modifiable while others are modifiable. Modifiable factors are those that can be changed by the human being (Miller & Lewis, 2003). These modifiable factors include 1) Diabetes: diabetes affects the normal functioning of the endothelium walls. It causes in activity of the platelets and a decrease the thrombin-resistance of the endothelium walls. This will accelerate the rate at which Coronary atherosclerosis grows in the body. 2) Pregnancy: pregnancy complications such as bleeding, preterm birth and gestation diabetes increase the chances of Coronary atherosclerosis. Postmortem is advised for the women are having high risks of these complications. 3) Obesity: obesity increases the amount of fats in the body. These fats are responsible for the thickening of the endothelium walls which later lead to the Coronary atherosclerosis. 4) Physical inactivity: lack of exercise causes accumulation of fats in the body. These fats destroy the arterial walls in the heart leading to endothelium dysfunction. 5) The other factors that cause Coronary atherosclerosis are tobacco/ cigarette smoking and high blood pressure Non-modifiable factors are the factors that cannot be controlled i.e. they are caused by nature (Miller & Lewis, 2003). These factors include I. Age: women who are above 55 years and men above 45 years are prone to this disease. II. Hereditary: sometimes people whom their parents had the diseases are also prone to atherosclerosis. III. Sex: men are prone to this disease more than the women are. Signs and symptoms Endothelium damage cannot be realized easily by the victims. This is because the damage can when one very young depending the amount of lipids he or she is taking. Furthermore, there are many signs of Coronary atherosclerosis that are confused the one for other disease. This is because of the resemblances they have. Angina is one of the common symptoms of Coronary atherosclerosis. This symptom can be described by many attributes that is has. These attributes include numbness, pressure, painful feeling and heaviness. These symptoms are confused for heartburns or indigestion. Angina pain is always felt in the chest but at times the pain can go to the arms and the left shoulders (Bruschke, 2002). The other common symptoms of Coronary atherosclerosis include nausea, sweating, breathing difficulties, dizziness and faster heartbeats. In some cases, the first symptoms can the heart attack. This results in due to the blockage of the heart arteries. Epidemiology and prevalence Atherosclerosis begins when someone is young. Its growth depends on the type of food eaten. It grows very fast when a lot of fatty foods are consumed. This is because fatty food increases the amount of cholesterol in the body. The common factors that increase the prevalence of this disease are race, geographical differences, age and sex. Blacks are known higher prevalence of obesity, hypertension and lack physical exercises than the whites. These factors are the one responsible for the high incidences or Coronary atherosclerosis among the blacks than among the whites. In addition, Asians have higher prevalence of Coronary atherosclerosis than the whites. This is because Asians have higher diabetes and lipoproteins. Coronary atherosclerosis is higher in men than in women. This is because tobacco use and diabetes is higher in men. Men are susceptible to this disease 10 years earlier than women. Another factor that makes Coronary atherosclerosis to be higher in men is the case of high blood pressure. The elderly people are more prone to Coronary atherosclerosis than the younger generation. This is because at elder age, cholesterol level is very high. This will increase the endothelium damage thus leading to Coronary atherosclerosis. Young people are having less prevalence to this disease because they are more active and they do many exercises that reduce the cholesterol level in the bodies (Bruschke, 2002). Western countries have high prevalence of Coronary atherosclerosis that the Far East countries. One of the reasons for this is the genetic difference between the people. Other factors might the different diets that one consumes and the amount of exercises done. Diagnostic testing There are many tests that are used to diagnose this illness. Some of these tests include the radionuclide scans, angiography, echocardiography, electrocardiography and the stethoscope. Physicians use the radionuclide scans to the see how blood is flowing in the heart arteries. They use a device, radioactive material that can record images of the heart. This test is done after a vasodilator has been injected in the blood. This drug will increase the diameter of the blood vessels. Another test can be done using echocardiography. This is where sound waves are used to bring in the heart images. Monitors are used to display the images though they do not give the exact images of heart arteries. The most accurate method of testing is the use of angiography. In this test, the blood vessels in the arm or leg are injected with viewing devices. Due to the contrast dye injected to the body, motion images are recorded. Through these images, blockages in the blood can easily be defined. Current medical treatment There are many traditional treatments of Coronary atherosclerosis that were used. These methods included doing exercises, change in lifestyles, losing weight, controlling blood pressure and consuming low cholesterol diet. The best treatment of this disease is the angioplasty. This helps in opening the blocked arteries. This will enable blood to flow well ensuring adequate oxygen distribution in the body (Waters, 2006). A surgery called coronary bypass grafting surgery can also be done. In this surgery, arteries that are working properly in other parts of the body are used to bypass the blocked arteries. Blood flow in the blocked vessels will then be improved (Waters, 2006). Prognosis Curing this disease is very hard. Physicians can only treat it. This is because Coronary atherosclerosis starts when someone is young. Its diagnosis is very during the early stages. Although the new technologies have enabled the physicians to treat the disease at the early stages, not all the infected population can be reached that fast. References Fuster, V., Ross, R., & Topol, E. J. (2002). Atherosclerosis and coronary artery disease. Philadelphia: Lippincott-Raven. Miller, N. E., & Lewis, B. (2003). Lipoproteins, atherosclerosis, and coronary heart disease. Amsterdam: Elsevier/North-Holland Biomedical Press. Waters, D. D. (2006). Stabilization of coronary atherosclerosis. London: Science Press. Fuster, V., Topol, E. J., & Nabel, E. G. (2005). Atherothrombosis and coronary artery disease. Philadelphia, PA: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. Bruschke, A. V. G. (2002). Lipid-lowering therapy and progression of coronary atherosclerosis. Dordrecht: Kluwer Academic Publishers. Vos, J. (1997). Retardation of progression of coronary atherosclerosis. Delft: Eburon. Arampatzis, C. A. (2004). Novel percutaneous therapies for complex coronary atherosclerosis. S.l: s.n.. Read More