Coronary artery disease (CAD) may result in chest pain and shortness of breath, indications of a heart attack. CAD is common, affecting about one in 20 adults. It’s also sneaky, influenced by factors like lifestyle, genetics, and age. The good news? Understanding CAD is the first step to protecting your heart, keeping it pumping strong.
Visit with Muthu Velusamy, MD, FACC, ABVM, and our team at the Cardiovascular Institute of America, with offices in Tampa and Lutz, Florida, for CAD screening, prevention, or treatment.
CAD is a chronic condition that limits blood flow in your coronary arteries, which are the vessels that deliver oxygen-rich blood to the heart muscle. CAD develops when plaque builds up, narrowing the arteries and restricting their ability to function effectively.
Left untreated, CAD is a risk factor for a heart attack, heart failure, abnormal heart rhythms, and other heart-related complications. Coronary artery disease is often called the “silent killer,” because you might not have symptoms until a heart attack occurs. That’s why screening is so important.
Modifiable or manageable risk factors for coronary artery disease include:
Fix, or unchangeable, CAD risk factors include:
CAD is common, affecting over 18 million adults in the United States. It’s the leading cause of death in the U.S. (and worldwide), causing about 375,000 American deaths each year.
Many people with CAD don’t know they have it — it’s common to have no symptoms until a complication, such as a heart attack, occurs. You might then experience chest pressure or pain, shortness of breath, heartburn, nausea, dizziness, or fatigue.
Cardiovascular Institute of America offers an array of painless CAD screenings to determine if you have this condition. Examples include blood testing, cardiac catheterization, heart imaging procedures like ultrasound, an electrocardiogram (EKG), and stress testing, among others.
CAD treatment includes making healthy lifestyle changes. Areas of focus include:
You might also take medications or undergo heart procedures, such as a coronary angioplasty and stent placement, or coronary artery bypass graft (CABG).
Early detection and treatment of CAD saves lives, which is why understanding this incredibly common disease is critical.
If you’ve been diagnosed with CAD or have more than one risk factor for the disease, contact the Cardiovascular Institute of America today for an evaluation. We have three Tampa-area office locations: one in Lutz, Florida, and two in Tampa.
