A heart attack is a very dangerous situation that occurs when a coronary artery, which carries blood to the heart, is occluded and pumps blood to the rest of the body.
It usually occurs because a thrombus has formed inside a coronary artery, which prevents an area of the myocardium, the heart muscle, from receiving blood. When this happens, that part of the heart begins to die. The consequences of this event are death by arrhythmia or heart failure (when the arrhythmia does not occur or is controlled, there is a scar in the heart that does not move, so it does not pump blood).
Causes of a heart attack
From birth, cholesterol and other substances begin to be deposited in our coronary arteries, forming what we know as coronary arteriosclerosis plaques. When one of these plaques ruptures, its contents come into contact with the blood, producing a clot that will block the blood vessel.
How to prevent a heart attack
Preventing a heart attack one hundred percent is practically impossible; however, there are things we can do to help us try.
Proper control of cholesterol levels, of course quitting smoking, controlling our diabetes, exercising, avoiding being overweight and controlling our blood pressure are all measures that help us to slow down – or at least slow down – the progression of these atherosclerosis plaques.