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Angina pectoris is a condition caused by a coronary heart disease. When the body is afflicted with coronary heart disease then the blood flow reduces and causes undue pain. Thus, the causes of angina are normally the reasons for an impending coronary heart disease.
The coronary arteries are small blood vessels that carry blood to the heart. This continuous flow of blood gives the required oxygen and the nutrients. This keeps the heart pumping. Sometimes during over exertion, the heart pumps more blood than is required and requires more oxygen. At such times, when the heart faces a lack of oxygen, then the person suffers from a chest pain, which later manifests itself as angina.
The three major coronary arteries are:
- Left anterior descending artery
- Left circumflex artery
- Right coronary artery
When the people have blockages in the arteries, then the cardiologist performs a series of tests that help to diagnose the gravity of the blockage.
The two main conditions under which angina occur are:
- Coronary Heart Disease or CAD
- Coronary artery spasm
Coronary Heart disease is the condition that occurs when the coronary arteries narrow down. The coronary arteries supply blood to the heart. Atherosclerosis is a condition when there is a constriction in the coronary arteries and plaque blocks them. Sometimes there are bulging masses or plaques called “Thermo” that form in the arterial walls.
Coronary Heart spasm occurs due to the following reasons:
- When the body gets cold : Sometimes a continuous exposure to cold could result in a coronary heart spasm.
- Emotional Stress : When there is considerable stress, then the emotions are affected. This resultant upheaval of emotions results in a coronary spasm.
- Some medicines : Some medicines tighten the blood vessels or narrow them down.
- Smoking : Smoking affects the bronchi and the lungs and causes a coronary spasm.
- Micro vascular angina : This affects the smallest coronary arteries and results in a coronary spasm. This causes a reduction in the flow of blood, which damages the walls of the arteries. Plaque affects the arterial walls.
Angina and Plaque
One of the main angina causes is the layer of plaque. Plaque narrows the arteries and stiffens it up. Plaque can be hard or soft. When the plaque is hard, there is a reduction in the flow of blood to the heart. This causes angina.
Sometimes plaque is soft and breaks open. This causes clots in the blood. These blood clots partly or completely block the coronary arteries. This situation causes angina. Thus, soft plaque is also one of the many causes of angina. Besides plaque, there are some immediate angina causes. They are:
- Physical Exertion
Often a lot of physical exertion applies pressure on the heart and makes it beat faster. This is because the heart is working against its capacity and pumps blood faster. This causes the heart to beat faster. Sometimes, a condition where the heart needs more oxygen results in angina.
- Emotional Stress
When the stress levels are high, the hormones zap the capacity of the individual. Stress releases many hormones. High stress levels sometimes are the trigger to create other health related problems. When the heart is under stress then there are more chances of having constricted arteries, restricted blood flow, lesser oxygen. Thus, emotional stress is another of the angina causes.
- Exposure to very hot or cold temperature
Sometimes extremes of temperatures can cause the heart to pump more blood as the body needs to feel warm. Thus, this condition of more oxygen requirement might lead the soft heart to exert itself more and thus cause angina.
- Heavy metals
Sometimes the fumes and contact with heavy metals proves detrimental to heart and its functions. This is also one of the major causes of angina.
- Unstable angina
Unstable angina occurs when the blood clots and completely or partially blocks the artery. Besides this, when plaque develops, then the artery bursts, and there are blood clots. This results in a very big blockage. The clot could be so big that it could block the entire artery. This causes a heart attack. Each time there is a block in the artery the body is under risk of angina.
Variant Angina
The spasmodic motion results in the tightening of the arteries and narrows it down. This causes the flow of blood to slow down, stop entirely and thus cause variant angina. Arteries narrow down the moment the heart shows spasms.
