BRAINCAKEAngina
Angina is chest pain caused by the heart muscle not receiving enough oxygen. It is a symptom of coronary heart disease.
Cause. When the coronary arteries are partly blocked by atheromas, enough blood may still reach the heart muscle at rest. But during exercise, stress or cold weather, the heart beats faster and harder, and the heart muscle needs more oxygen. The narrowed arteries cannot deliver enough.
Short of oxygen, the cardiac muscle cells respire anaerobically for a time, producing lactate. This, together with the lack of oxygen, causes pain. The pain is usually felt as a tight, heavy or crushing feeling in the chest, and it may spread to the left arm, neck or jaw. People may also feel breathless.
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More in Cardiovascular Diseases
- Atherosclerosis
- Aneurysms
- Raised Blood Pressure
- Heart Disease
- Thrombosis
- Heart Attacks
- Strokes
- Epidemiology
All 20 lessons in Cardiovascular Diseases · All Edexcel AS-level Biology topics