Blocked arteries, or atherosclerosis, is a medical condition where fatty substances collect along arterial walls. In addition, as the material hardens and thickens, it can lead to blocked arteries. Atherosclerosis affects the medium and large coronary arteries and occurs when cholesterol, fat and other substances build up in arterial walls and form plaques. Blocked arteries require treatment because failure to treat this condition can result in chest pain, heart attack or stroke.
Medications
Cholesterol medications can lower low-density lipoprotein , or LDL, cholesterol, also known as "bad" cholesterol, and can slow down, stop or reverse plaque build-up in the arteries, states MayoClinic.com. These medications can also increase high-density lipoprotein, or HDL, cholesterol, known as "good" cholesterol, which is beneficial to heart health as well. Beta blocker medications are used for coronary artery disease because they lower the heart rate and blood pressure, thereby reducing the demands on the heart, and relieving symptoms of chest pain. In addition, beta blocker medications also reduce the risk of heart rhythm problems and heart attack. Anti-platelet medications, such as aspirin, reduce the risk that platelets will stick together in the narrowed coronary arteries. When platelets clump together in the arteries, they form a blood clot and can cause further damage, warns MayoClinic.com. Water pills, or diuretics, lower blood pressure, which is also a risk factor for artery blockage. Other medications that treat blocked arteries include angiotension-converting enzymes, or ACE, inhibitors. These medications help slow the progression of atherosclerosis because they lower blood pressure and provide beneficial effects on the coronary arteries. ACE inhibitors also reduce risk of recurrent heart attacks.
Angioplasty
Angioplasty is also known as percutaneous coronary intervention, or PC, and is a medical procedure used to re-open blocked coronary arteries. This procedure involves temporarily inserting a tiny balloon where the occlusion is located, and blowing it up. This procedure helps widen the coronary artery and re-establish blood flow. Angioplasty is often used in conjunction with the placement of a stent, which is a small metal coil that helps prop open the artery, and decreases the likelihood that it will narrow again, states MayoClinic.com. In addition, angiography can improve symptoms of occluded arteries, such as shortness of breath and chest pain, and can also be used to quickly open a clogged artery during a heart attack to reduce the amount of cardiac damage. If the main artery that supplies the left side of the heart is blocked, if the heart muscle is weakened, or if small blood vessels are diseased, coronary artery bypass surgery might be a better treatment option.
Coronary Bypass Surgery
Coronary bypass surgery is a medical procedure that restores the blood flow to the heart muscle by diverting its flow around a portion of a clogged artery in the heart. This procedure utilizes a healthy blood vessel from the leg, chest, abdomen or arm and attaches it to other coronary arteries so blood can be bypassed around the blocked or diseased artery.
