Computed Tomography

Coronary artery disease (CAD) develops when plaque builds up in the narrow arteries of the heart. The arteries that are affected supply blood to your heart, oxygen, and numerous amounts of nutrients to the heart. The plaque that builds in the arteries is from the amount of cholesterol that is accumulated in the arteries. The plaque that builds within the arteries of the heart decrease the blood flow to the heart often resulting in chest pain (angina), shortness of breath, or other symptoms. This disease is often not diagnosed until the patient has a heart attack. The reason that coronary artery disease goes unnoticed is because this disease develops over decades. “Heart disease is the leading cause of

Coronary Artery Disease, also known as CAD, is the most common form of heart disease. (Heart and Stroke Foundation, 2009) Coronary Artery Disease obstructs the blood flow in vessels that provides blood to the heart which is caused by the buildup of plaque on the artery walls. (Rogers, 2011, p.87) (Heart and Stroke Foundation, 2009) Plaque is a yellow substance that consists of fat substances, like cholesterol, and narrows or clogs the arteries which prevents blood flow. (Heart and Stroke Foundation, 2009) Plaque can build up in any artery but usually favors large and medium sized arteries. (Heart and Stroke Foundation, 2009)

Resistance in the heart could lead to problems in blood pumping to the entire body. In order to identify how much coronary plaque is present in the walls of the artery, Computed Tomographic (CT) scans are used to help find the calcium score. The calcium score can be arranged from 0 to 100, and is measured through the Agatston score.1, 4 There have been many researches and follow ups of patients who were at risk for CHD or atherosclerosis and were labeled with a calcium score. It was found that Individuals with a CAC score of 100 or more had an incidence density of 22.4 deaths per 100 people observed for 12.5 years.4 Any CAC in early adult life (younger than 50), even in those with very low scores, indicates significant risk of having and possibly

Angiograms are for diagnostic purposes so in the x-ray imaging one would look for a narrowing of the artery/vein. The x-ray moves takes 2-5 second videos from five different angles of the heart. During this time they surgeon and those in the control room look for any potential plaque blockages where the vessel becomes restricted and the color of the dye is not as dark. Of the eight angiograms five needed stents or valve replacements. They also pump a large amount of dye into the left ventricle of the heart to see the strength at which it is pumping. The first angiogram procedure I saw was on this 350lb man who was having heart arrhythmias and through this procedure they were able to determine that there was a 70% blockage in one of his arteries. However, Dr. Reichard wanted to do further investigation to see how much blood was getting through to determine if

Coronary illness is the development of plaque (fat store on the inward dividers of the veins) in the coronary conduits that supply O2 rich blood to the heart muscle, the development of plaque is called atherosclerosis. After some time passes plaques may solidify therefore limiting blood stream or totally obstructing the corridor. The development of plaque is straightforwardly identified with a people way of life, normal danger elements incorporate stoutness, high blood cholesterol and diabetes. At the point when the endothelium is harmed by blood stream, the cholesterol and fats in the blood get stuck shaping plaques. This outcomes in hypertension due the heart endeavoring to supply obliged levels of blood to the body. In the event that the blood stream to the heart muscles is limited or blocked it may

The plaque restricts blood flow to the heart and deprive the heart of oxygen it needs to function properly. CAD can be chronic, which is narrowing of the coronary artery and limitation of the blood supply to part of the muscle, or it can be acute, which results from a sudden plaque that ruptures. According to Warnica (2013), rupturing of the plaque “exposes collagen and other thrombogenic material, which activates platelets and the coagulation cascade, resulting in an acute thrombus, which interrupts coronary blood flow and causes some degree of myocardial ischemia.” The major risk factors that can lead to atherosclerosis and coronary artery disease are hypertension, dyslipidemia, tobacco smoking, diabetes mellitus, obesity, sedentary lifestyle, and genetic predisposition. The risk factors present in M.T.’s life are history of angina pectoris, history of uncontrolled hypertension due to non-compliance with treatment, obesity, and stress. M.T. is overweight with 289 pounds. M.T.’s cholesterol level is high at 280mg/dl. M.T.’s stress is related to experiencing the death of his best friend and business partner from cancer. Having three teenage children who are constantly in trouble at school and a wife who recently lost her job can be a stress factor in M.T.’s

Cardiac arrest is a grave medical emergency where the heart stops pumping blood throughout the body and can lead to death in minutes. There are currently 30,000 out of hospital cardiac arrest in UK (Perkins, 2016). In coronary artery disease there is a obstruction in the arteries that supply blood and oxygen to the heart. The initial step in coronary artery disease (CAD) is the formation of atherosclerosis. The build up of plaque is called atherosclerosis. CAD is a progressive disease that most commonly presents as angina. The beginning of CAD is thought

Calcific or degenerative aortic valve disease is considered one of the most, if not the most, common valvular lesion encountered among elderly patients.( Iung B, Baron G, Butchart EG, et al.) In fact, as shown in the Helsinki Aging Study, 501 randomly selected people, men and women, in an age range from 75 to 86 underwent echocardiography. (Iivanainen AM, Lindroos M, Tilvis R, et al) The outcome of the research was that, the prevalence of critical aortic stenosis increased with age from 1 to 2 percent in those patients aged between 75 and 76, up to almost 6 percent in those 86 years of age (Lindroos M, Kupari M, Heikkilä J, Tilvis R.)

(Genis et al., 2000). In addition, coronary calcification has long been known to appear as part of the atherosclerotic process, which is known to over time resemble bone formation within the vessel wall. (Nikolaos et al., 2009)

Arterial calcifications, for example in the coronary arteries, may be detected in vivo (in a living person) by methods such as electron beam computed tomography (EBCT) coronary arteriography, plain film X rays, fluoroscopy, intravascular ultrasound, MRI and CT scan. EBCT and fluoroscopy are the most commonly used techniques in the blood vessel investigations, while CT scans are very sensitive for the detection as well as the localization of intracranial calcifications. Calcifications produce the appearance of high-density material on CT scans and X-rays.

Atherosclerosis is a disease in which fatty materials and plaque buildup on the inner lining of arteries. Arteries are blood vessels which carry rich blood to the heart and throughout the body. They’re lined by the endothelium, a thin layer of cells. The endothelium keeps blood flowing by keeping the inside of arteries smooth. However, when Atherosclerosis starts due to high blood pressure, smoking, or high cholesterol, it damages the endothelium. Atherosclerosis tends to happen throughout the body and arises when people grow older. This disease is mainly due to the deposition of fatty materials i.e., cholesterol, calcium and other substances found in the blood. The buildup of fat then hardens causing narrowing of the arteries. This

Aortic stenosis is the narrowing down of the opening of the aortic heart valve, this is a common valvular disease in the modern world. The aortic stenosis is classified into two types, congenital and acquired. In congenital aortic stenosis, it is often observed that the malformation of a bicuspid valve instead of a natural tricuspid valve. The leaflets are fused to create a bicuspid structure. While in acquired stenosis, there is narrowing down of the valve opening due to calcification which usually starts from the roots and extends to the end of the opening creating a stiffened and narrowed opening as shown in Figure 7 [22]. This calcification process formed over the course of decades of unhealthy diet, smoking, obesity and other cardio vascular

Moreover, there has been documented increases in calcification in patients who are closely followed up. The deposits are found in the walls of capillaries and small to medium-sized arteries and with a much lesser frequency in veins and venules. Deposition of other compounds such as mucopolysaccharides and elements like iron, magnesium and zinc have also been found in these vessels in FS.

Coronary artery disease (CAD) is caused by fatty buildup in the arteries of the heart. Your arteries are made to carry oxygen infused blood to your heart and other parts of your body if it is filled up with plaque, which is the fatty substance that clogs and blocks up the arteries. If it gets clogged enough to where your heart is not receiving fresh oxygen, you could have a heart attack that could cause very serious damage to your body and could even kill you. When you are younger, you can begin to grow plaque in your blood vessels from not eating right and not exercising regularly. When your arteries are being filled up with plaque they become more narrow and harder for blood to get through as easily as it is supposed to be. When you have

Atherosclerosis is a type of arteriosclerosis. Arteriosclerosis is a general term for the thickening and hardening of arteries. Atherosclerosis, or hardening of the arteries, is a pathological situation in which plaque builds up inside the arteries. Plaque is usually made of cholesterol, fatty substances, cellular products, calcium and fibrin (a clotting material in the blood). Atherosclerosis is the leading cause of mortality and morbidity from cardiovascular disease (CVD) around the world. The magnitude of this problem is so high that atherosclerosis claims more lives than all types of cancer combined and the financial burden are considerable1. It a complex, chronic pathological