Coronary artery disease develops when the blood arteries in the heart cannot carry enough blood and oxygen. This is usually because plaque, a fatty material, has damaged, diseased, or obstructed the vessels. Atherosclerosis is a condition caused by plaque formation. This can result in coronary artery disease (CAD).
The goals of coronary heart disease treatment are to manage symptoms and delay or stop the disease’s progression. Lifestyle modifications, such as better food and exercise habits, may be your doctor’s first treatment option for CAD. Your doctor may recommend drugs if these adjustments aren’t adequate.
Drugs can also help address the consequences of coronary artery disease. According to research, if artery blockage is less than 70% and does not severely restrict blood flow, medicines may be the first line of treatment.
Coronary Heart Disease Treatments
Simple lifestyle modifications can help you avoid aggravating your coronary heart disease if you’ve been diagnosed with it. After a heart attack, quitting smoke reduces your risk of having another heart attack to a level similar to that of a nonsmoker. Eating healthy foods and exercising regularly lowers your risk of heart disease.
Medicines
There are many kinds of medicines to treat coronary artery disease. The aim of these medicines is majorly to widen the arteries and reduce the patient’s blood pressure. Any medication should be through a doctor’s directions.
Medications that thin the blood
Blood thinners are a type of medication that thins your blood and keeps it from clotting, lowering your chance of a heart attack. The following are examples of common blood thinners:
- Aspirin (low-dose)
- Clopidogrel
- Rivaroxaban \sticagrelor \sprasugrel
Statins
Statins help those with high cholesterol in their bodies. Here are several examples:
- Atorvastatin
- Ssimvastatin
- Srosuvastatin
- Spravastatin
Statins prevent cholesterol from forming and increase the low-density lipoprotein (LDL) receptors in the liver.
Beta-blockers.
Beta-blockers, such as atenolol, bisoprolol, metoprolol, and nebivolol, are commonly used to manage high blood pressure and avoid angina. They work by suppressing the actions of a specific hormone in the body, which causes your heartbeat to decrease and blood flow to improve.
Nitrates
Nitrates are a type of salt that is used to dilate blood arteries. Nitrates are sometimes referred to as vasodilators by doctors. Glyceryl trinitrate and isosorbide mononitrate come in several forms, including tablets, sprays, and skin patches.Nitrates relax blood arteries, allowing more blood to flow through them.
Surgical Procedures
Interventional techniques or surgery may be required to open up or bypass clogged arteries if you have narrowed arteries due to a build-up of atheroma (fatty deposits) or if medications do not control your symptoms. some of the most common surgical therapies for coronary artery disease include:
Angioplasty of the coronary arteries
Percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA), and balloon angioplasty are used to describe coronary angioplasty. Angioplasty may be a planned procedure or an emergency treatment for someone with angina if the symptoms have become unstable.
Coronary angiography will establish whether or not you are eligible for therapy. During a heart attack, coronary angioplasty is also used as an emergency treatment. A tiny balloon is placed during the surgery to push the fatty tissue in the constricted artery outwards. This procedure makes it easier for the blood to flow. To keep the artery open, a metal stent is usually inserted. Drug-eluting stents are another option. These inject drugs into the artery to prevent it from constricting again.
Bypass graft of the coronary arteries
Bypass surgery, a heart bypass, or coronary artery bypass surgery are all terms used to describe coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG). It’s done on persons who have restricted or obstructed arteries. If you’re eligible for therapy, coronary angiography will be performed.
A type of coronary artery bypass surgery is known as off-pump coronary artery bypass (OPCAB). It’s done without using a heart-lung machine because the heart continues to pump blood on its own. A blood vessel is inserted (grafted) between the major artery leaving the heart (the aorta) and a section of the coronary artery outside the narrowed or an obstructed portion; a blood vessel is inserted (grafted).
An artery supplying blood to the chest wall may be utilised and diverted to one of the cardiac arteries occasionally. This permits blood to bypass (pass-through) constricted parts of the coronary arteries.
Transplantation of the heart
A heart transplant is often necessary when the heart is severely damaged, and treatment is ineffective, or when the heart cannot efficiently pump blood around the body (heart failure).
Heart transplant involves the replacement of a damaged or malfunctioning heart with a healthy donor heart. Your blood pressure and relieve any heart pain you may be experiencing.
You must follow your doctor’s advice. Always take your meds as prescribed and follow the lifestyle adjustments that are suggested. If you have a higher risk of coronary artery disease, you can avoid it by lowering your risk factors.
