What is a Myocardial Infarction?

    Myocardial infarction also commonly known as a heart attack, and is characterized by the interruption of blood supply to the heart which prevents oxygen from getting to the heart muscle. The myocardium, or heart muscle tissue, will either die or become permanently damaged if subjected to ischemia [7,13]. Myocardial Infarction (MI) is commonly caused by occlusion of the coronary artery from atherosclerotic plaque [7,13].

    This atherosclerotic plaque is a buildup of fatty materials such as cholesterol and triglycerides. This buildup occurs due to the disease called atherosclerosis which is where the artery walls thicken as a result of the plaque buildup [1]. This disease is characterized by an inflammatory response of the vessel wall, when there is an accumulation of macrophage white blood cells and lipoproteins. In a healthy vessel, these fats are removed from the macrophages by high density lipoproteins [1]. However, when this removal does not successfully occur the wall of the artery begins to harden due the buildup of plaque [1].

    When an atherosclerotic plaque ruptures, a portion of the plaque will become dislodged from the vessel wall, and attempt to move through the vessel. When this plaque gets caught this can lead to occlusion of the vessel, and in the case where the coronary artery is occluded, this dislodging will lead to myocardial infarction [7,13].