Aortic sclerosis -- a window to the coronary arteries?
Article Abstract:
Aortic sclerosis may be a early marker for coronary artery disease. This condition is characterized by a hardening of the aortic valve in the heart, usually caused by excessive calcium deposits. Many doctors consider it a benign condition. However, a 1999 study found that people with aortic sclerosis had a higher risk of death from heart disease compared to those without this condition. This was true even after adjusting for other risk factors. Aortic sclerosis causes a heart murmur that can be heard through a stethoscope. Thus, it could be a screening method for detecting early heart disease.
Publication Name: The New England Journal of Medicine
Subject: Health
ISSN: 0028-4793
Year: 1999
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Can we predict future acute coronary events in patients with stable coronary artery disease?
Article Abstract:
We need to develop better means of predicting which patients with stable coronary artery disease are at risk for heart attacks and strokes. Imaging techniques and exercise testing to evaluate heart function have failed because heart attacks and strokes occur when a piece of the deposits lining the heart's blood vessels suddenly breaks away and blocks a vessel. Invasive testing is not indicated in patients with stable disease. Testing to identify the presence of coronary artery disease still has value. Coronary artery disease itself is a predictive factor.
Publication Name: JAMA, The Journal of the American Medical Association
Subject: Health
ISSN: 0098-7484
Year: 1997
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The pathogenesis of coronary artery disease and the acute coronary syndromes
Article Abstract:
Most acute coronary syndromes - like heart attacks and angina - occur when a cut or fissure develops in the atherosclerotic plaque that lines the coronary arteries in patients with coronary artery disease. A blood clot forms to heal the cut, but if the artery has been narrowed by disease, the clot can cut off the supply of blood to the heart. There is evidence to indicate that this is also how the plaques themselves build up - by alternate cycles of fissuring and clot formation.
Publication Name: The New England Journal of Medicine
Subject: Health
ISSN: 0028-4793
Year: 1992
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