Dealing With A Heart Attack: Heart Disease

Content provided by the Faculty of the Harvard Medical School

Dealing with a heart attack

A heart attack, known medically as a myocardial infarction, occurs when a blood clot blocks one of the coronary arteries (see Figure 5). Each coronary artery supplies blood to a specific part of the heart's muscular wall, so a blocked artery causes pain and malfunction in the area it supplies. Depending on the location and the amount of heart muscle involved, this malfunction can seriously interfere with the heart's ability to pump blood. Also, some of the coronary arteries supply areas of the heart that regulate heartbeat, so a blockage sometimes causes potentially fatal abnormal heartbeats called cardiac arrhythmias.

Most people are familiar with the classic description of a heart attack: crushing chest pressure; pain radiating to the neck, jaw, back, or arm; sweating and shortness of breath; sudden "indigestion" that isn't relieved by antacids. If you experience these symptoms or others that indicate you may be having a heart attack (see Table 9), call your doctor immediately and go to the nearest emergency room. Chew an aspirin on the way to help reduce your blood's tendency to clot.

Every second counts. In one landmark study, people who received treatment within one to two hours were only half as likely to die as those who were treated four to six hours after the onset of symptoms. The primary goal in treating a heart attack is to unblock the artery and restore blood flow to the heart as fast as possible with medication or surgery. Doing so will minimize the damage to the heart tissue.

Figure 5: How a heart attack happens Heart attacks occur when a coronary artery is completely blocked. When a plaque deposit in your artery ruptures, red blood cells, clotting factors, and platelets rush to the scene (A) to form a clot. The clot can completely block blood flow to the heart (B). Without prompt emergency measures, such as thrombolytic (clot-busting) medication or emergency balloon angioplasty, the heart muscle downstream from the clot can die from lack of oxygen and nutrients (C).

Last updated:	May 03, 2007