Left Main Coronary Artery Diseases

Chest pain and heart attack is the frequent result when diseases strike any of the heart's arteries, including the left main coronary artery.

Identificaton

• According to the National Institutes of Health, coronary artery disease (CAD) occurs when blood vessels leading to the heart become hardened, or clogged, with a collection of fatty deposits known as plaque.

Significance

• This buildup of plaque is called atherosclerosis and may lead to heart attack or stroke. CAD is the most typical type of heart disease and leading cause of death in the United States, according to the National Institutes of Health.

Description

• The left coronary artery and the right coronary artery provide access routes for blood flow to the heart. The left artery is also referred to as the left main trunk and supplies oxygen and blood to the left side of the heart. Left main coronary artery diseases are caused by this plaque buildup in the left artery.

Treatment

• According to the Ohio State University Medical Center, the three primary treatments for CAD are medical therapy with medications like aspirin and nitroglycerin, percutaneous catheter interventions such as balloon angioplasty and stenting, or coronary artery bypass surgery.

Process

• Angiolasty and stents clear the arteries of blockage while stents are tiny tubes that prop open the tunnels to make way for blood flow. Bypass surgery uses a vein from another part of the body to reroute blood flow.