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Coronary artery disease (CAD)
Posted: Feb. 1, 2005
Coronary artery disease is a type of heart disease. The coronary arteries are blood vessels that carry blood and oxygen to the heart muscle. When these arteries become clogged with fatty deposits called plaque, it is called coronary artery disease (CAD).
CAD is sometimes called coronary heart disease (CHD).
Clogged arteries can keep the heart from getting enough blood and oxygen and can cause chest pain (angina). If a blood clot forms, it can suddenly cut off blood flow in the artery and cause a heart attack.
Plaque forms in the arteries over many years in a process called atherosclerosis. One cause of plaque in the arteries is too much cholesterol in the blood. As plaque builds up, the artery opening gradually narrows and becomes clogged. The artery can also become less elastic (called "hardening of the arteries").
What are the symptoms of CAD?
You may not know that you have CAD until you begin to have symptoms from clogged arteries. Chest pain (angina) and shortness of breath are often the first signs of coronary artery disease. Some people don't know that they have CAD until they have a heart attack.
If you have several risk factors for CAD, you should talk with your health care provider even if you have no symptoms. There are things you can do to lower your risks and improve the health of your heart and blood vessels.
Tests are used to diagnose CAD
Some of the tests include:
Electrocardiogram (ECG or EKG). This commonly used test records your heart's electrical activity and can show certain problems such as abnormal heartbeats or damage to the heart.
Stress tests. In a simple stress test, your heart, breathing and blood pressure are monitored while you exercise using a treadmill. An ECG is usually done before, during and after the stress test.
Echocardiography. An echocardiogram is an exam of the heart using sound waves.
Coronary angiography or arteriography. This is a computerized X-ray of the coronary arteries. A catheter (a thin plastic tube) is inserted into an artery in the groin or arm and threaded into a coronary artery. After a fluid is injected, the X-ray reveals blockages in the coronary arteries.
Other kinds of tests may help find CAD early, before symptoms appear. Ultrasound and computed tomography (CT) are examples. If you are at high risk for CAD, your health care provider may suggest that you be tested even if you have no symptoms.
Know the risk factors
One of the main risk factors for getting CAD is aging. Women tend to get heart disease later than men do. It is thought that female hormones help protect women from heart disease before menopause. After menopause, women have heart disease as often as men do.
Other things that raise your chances of heart disease include:
• High cholesterol levels
• High blood pressure
• Diabetes
• A diet too high in saturated fat
• Being overweight
• Not exercising
• Too much stress
• Smoking
• Having close relatives with heart disease at younger ages
Treatments for CAD
There are three main treatments for CAD — medicine, surgical procedures like angioplasty that open blocked arteries, and bypass surgery. None of these treatments cures heart disease.
In addition, it is important to make lifestyle changes: Eat a healthy, low-saturated-fat diet, get lots of exercise and don't smoke. People with diabetes, high blood pressure or high cholesterol need to be careful to follow the treatment plan prescribed by their health care providers.
Source: U.S. Department of Health & Human Services’ Office of Women’s Health
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