Coronary Artery Disease — Symptoms and Complications

A graduate of the Hahnemann Medical College, Dr. Sepideh Moayed is the founder and CEO of Preventative Medicine Inc. Dr. Sepideh Moayed also serves as a radiologist with the Los Gatos Medical Center and works to help patients prevent conditions such as cardiovascular and coronary artery disease. Coronary artery disease is one of the most common heart conditions in the US. When a patient develops coronary artery disease, plaques made from deposits of cholesterol build up on the artery walls that supply blood to the heart. The plaque buildup causes the arteries to narrow and limit the flow of blood. Some of the most common symptoms are chest pain and discomfort in the arms and shortness of breath. If coronary artery disease goes untreated, it can lead to life-threatening conditions such as heart attack or heart failure. Since the plaque buildup limits the flow of the blood, areas of the heart can be deprived of oxygen, in which case the heart can become too weak to pump blood throughout the body. Also, the lack of blood flow can cause a heart attack, which may result in permanent damage to the heart muscles. CTA, coronary artery angiography aids in detecting these areas of plaque formation and narrowing. CTA can detect not only calcified and soft plaques, but it can give estimate of the degree of narrowing and options to reverse these regions of vascular narrowing. Interventional cardiologists can then utilize stent placement to help maintain patency. As a radiologist who is passionate about health, Dr. Sepideh Moayed helps her patients to optimize their lifestyle contributors so as to help maintain their vascular health. Arteriosclerosis and atherosclerosis are more than mere calcifications within the lining of the vessels. There are many contributors than need to be addressed and corrected otherwise the plaque will recur. Keeping the endothelial lining healthy is crucial. The endothelium has a thin endo calyx that benefits from nitric oxide produced through exercise. This lining is very delicate and damages easily when exposed to excess sugar, oxidized fats and toxic chemicals in smoking. As long as patients continue to do live a high stress unhealthy life, the vascular endothelium will continue to be damaged and will continue to form plaques. It’s not a question of if but when. Conversely, those who make the lifestyle changes of stress reduction, eating healthy whole foods, engaging in daily exercise while avoiding toxin building habits such as smoking or excessive drinking/sugar consumption, can minimize/prevent plaque formation and vascular endothelium damage. Meanwhile, Coronary Artery Angiogram is a noninvasive way of screening high risk patients as well as those who come to the ER with subacute symptoms of chest pain.