Chapter 8 Flashcards
What is stable angina?
Chest pain that arises with exertion or emotional stress due to atherolsloersis of coronary arteries with 70+% stenosis where decreased blood flow is not able to meet the metabolic demands of the myocardium during exertion
This represents REVERSIBLE myocyte injury (not necrosis) and presents as chest pain lasting less than 20 minutes that raidates to the left arm or jaw, diasphoresis, and SOB.
Relived by rest or nitroglycerin
What is unstable angina?
Chest pain that occurs at rest usually due to rupture of atheroslcerotic plaque with thrombsis and INCOMPLETE occlusion of a coronary artery. Again this represents REVERSIBLE injury to myocytes (no necrosis)
Both stable and unstable angina will show ST segment depression due to subendocardial ischemia
Relived by nitroglycerin but risk of progression to MI
What is Prinzmetal angina?
An episode of chest pain unrelated to exertion due to coronary artery vasospasm. Represents reversible cell injury.
Tx with nitroglycerin or CCBs
Myocardial Infarction
Necrosis of myocytes usually due to thrombosis with complete occlusion of a coronary artery (can also be caused by Prinzmetal angina or cocaine use), emboli, and vasculitis
Presents with severe, crushign chest pain that is NOT relieved by nitroglycerin
Infarction typically involves the left and right ventricles but spares the atria
What commonly occluded artery causing MI?
Left anterior descending artery
Next: RCA
The initial phase of MI leads to subendocardial necrosis involving less than 50% of the thickness (subendocardial infarction) and an EKG showing ST-segment depression. With continued ischemia, this will transition to a transmural infarction with EKG findings of ST-segment elevation
What are the lab findings/enzymes of a MI?
- Troponin I is the most sensitive and specific marker (gold standrd) for MO and levels typically rise 2-4 hrs after infarction, peak at 24 hrs, and return to normal by 7-10 days
- Ck-MB can be useful for detecting reinfarction that occurs days after an intiial MI; These levels rise 4-6 hrs after infarction, peak at 24 hrs, and return to normal with 72 hrs
What is the Tx for an MI?
Aspirin and/or heparin- limits thrombosis
- Supplemental O2
- Nitrates- vasodilate VEINS and coronary arteries
- BBs-decreases O2 demand
- ACEI-decreases LV dilation
Fibrinolysis or angiplasty can also be used to open occluded vessels in an MI. What are some down sides of that?
- Reperfusion of irreversibly damaged cells results in calcium influx, leading to hypercontraction of myofibrils (contraction band necrosis; below)
- Return of oxygen and inflammatory cells may lead to free radical generation (reperfusion injury)
What are the major complications of an MI within 4 hrs?
Cardiogenic shock (massive infarct), CHF, and arrhythmia
What are the major complications of an MI within 4-24 hrs?
Gross changes: Dark discoloration
Microscopic changes: Coagulative necrosis
Complciations: Arryhthmias
What are the major complications of an MI within 1-3 days?
Gross changes: yellow pallor
Microscopic chnages: Neutrophils
Complications: Fibrinous pericarditis (friction rub)
What are the major complications of an MI within 4-7 days?
Gross changes: Yellow palor
Microscopic changes: Macrophages
Complications: Rupture of ventricular free wall leading to tamponade, interventricular septum, or papillary muscle insufficiency/necrosis
What are the major complications of an MI within 1-3 weeks?
Gross changes: Red borde emerges as granulation tissue enters the infarct
What are the major complications of an MI within months?
Gross: White scar
Microscopic changes: Fibrosis
Complications: Aneurysm, mural thrombosis, or Dressler syndrome
What is Dressler Syndrome?
Dressler’s syndrome is a type of pericarditis — inflammation of the sac surrounding the heart (pericardium). Dressler’s syndrome is believed to be an immune system response after damage to heart tissue or to the pericardium, from events such as a heart attack, surgery or traumatic injury. Symptoms include chest pain, which may be similar to chest pain experienced during a heart attack.
Dressler’s syndrome may also be called postpericardiotomy syndrome, post-myocardial infarction syndrome and post-cardiac injury syndrome. With recent improvements in heart attack treatment, Dressler’s syndrome is less common than it used to be.
Describe left-sided heart failure
Causes include ischemia, HTN, dilated cardiomyopathy, MI, and restrictive cardiomyopathy
Clinical features are due to decreased foward perfusion and pulmonary congestion, leading to pulmonary edema resulting in dyspnea, paroxysmal nocturnal dyspnea due to increased venous return while laying down.
May also result in bursting of small capilaries leading to intraalveolar hemorrhage marked by hemosiderin-laden macrophages (below)
Decreased kidney perfusion leads to activation of the renin system leading to increased fluid retention and edema
Tx with ACEI
Describe right-sided heart failure
Most commonly due to left0sides heart failure, left-to-right shunts, and chronic lung disease (cor pulmonale)
Clinical features due to congestion and include JVD, painful HSM with characteristic nutmeg (below) liver that may lead to cirrhosis, and depenent pitting edema
Congenital heart defects most commonly arise during what embryonic period?
3-8 weeks
How do left-to-right shunts present?
May be relatively asymptomatic at birth but the shunt can reverse eventually due to the following sequence:
- Increased flow through the pulmonary circulation results in hypertrophy of the pulmonary vessels and HTN, eventually causing shunt reversal, leading to late cyanosis (Eisenmenger syndrome) with right ventricular hypertrophy, polycythemia, and clubbing
How do right-to-left shunts present?
Usually with cyanosis shortly after birth
Describe VSDs
Defect in the septum that seperates the left and right ventricles; Most common congenital heart defect; associated with fetal alcohol syndrome
Results in a left-to-right shunt and the size of the shunt determines the extent of shunting and age at presentation- shunt can reverse
Tx with surgical closure
Describe ASDs
Defect in the septum seperating the right and left atria
Describe Patent Ductus Arteriosus
Failure of the ductus arteriosus to close; associated with congential RUBELLA
Resulting in a left-right shunt between the aorta and the pulmonary artery
Auscultation findings of Patent Ductus Arteriosus?
Continuous machine-like murmur
Complications of Patent Ductus Arteriosus?
It may reverse causing a differential cyanosis (cyanosis of the lower extremities only)
How are PDAs tx?
Tx involves Indomethacin, which decreases PGE, resulting in PDA closure (PGE maintains the patency of the ductus arteriosus)
What is the tetrad of tetralogy of fallot?
- Stenosis of the right ventricular outflow tract
- Right ventricular hypertrophy
- VSD
- An overriding aorta over the VSD
Describe tetralogy of fallot
Right-to-left shunt leading to early cyanosis in which pts typically learn to squat in response to a cyanotic spell (increased arterial resistance decreases the shunting and allows more blood to reach the lungs)
Boot shaped heart