Myocardial Ischemia and infarction Flashcards
What is myocardial ischemia
A condition of reversible inadequate blood supply to the heart due to fixed coronary stenosis, increased myocardial demand, coronary vasospasm, intraplaque hemorrhage, super imposed thrombosis or any combination of these factors
What defines acute ischemia?
Ischemia that has lsted only minutes to hours at the most a few days
What are some of the occurences that happen after only 1 minute of ischemia?
Loss of glycogen, mitochondrial swelling, cellular swelling and loss of contractility occur after only one minute of ischemia, and a fata arrhythmia may preceede irreversible injury to myocytes
Can the manifestation of acute myocardial ischemia be visualized by Light microscopy?
No
How would acutely ischemic myocytes appear under light microscope?
Normal, they are not dead yet but they do not work
What can gradually cause these non-fuctional myocytes of acute ischemia to gradually regain their contractile function?
Restoration of adequate blood supply
What are the features of the “stunned myocytes?”
- Accumulated excess Calcium
- Oxygen derived free radicals
- Damage to its cytoplasmic proteins and organelles which takes time to reverse
What is Chronic Ischemia?
Ischemia last weeks months or years
What are the features of Chronic Ischemia
These myocytes catabiloze their contractile proteins and revert to primitive state limited to survival functions
How would myocytes of the chronic ischemia (hibernating myocytes) appear under light microscopy?
They would show clear vacuolization of their cytoplasm due to the catabolism of contractile proteins
What is Myocytolysis?
The light microscopy appearance of hibernating myocytes
Can function of chronically ischemic myocytes return?
Yes with adequate blood flow restored there will be gradual regeneration of all the normal cytoplasmic proteins
What develops in response to chronic mycardial ischemia?
Collateral coronary arteries
What is ischemic pre-conditioning?
Resistance to mild-moderate ischemia due to induction of protective proteins by brief episodes of ischemia
What is myocardial infarction
The irreversible necrosis of heart muscle due to prolonged ischemia (greater than 20 minutes)
How the the myocardial infarction/necrosis occur?
Thought to occur in a wavefront starting in the subendocardial region and not complete until 6 hours after it is started
What is the time fram where thrombolytic therapy or angioplasty is thought to be beneficial?
20minutes -6hours after the onset of ischemia
What is Chronic ischemia?
Repeated episodes of ischemia too brief to cause infarction or inadequate perfusion that is low injure myocytes but not low enough to kill them
What is the most common cause of Myocardial infarctions?
Coronary atherosclerosis
What are some of the other causes of MI?
- Coronary vascilitis
- Coronary emboli
- Endocarditis
- Vasospasm (Cocaine)
- Antiphospholipid antibody syndrome
What is meant by transmural infaction?
Infaction affecting the full thickening of the heart wall
What is associated with Transmural infarcts 90% of the time?
Occlusive thrombosis superimposed on an Atherosclerotic plaque than undergoes an acute change typically disruption of an unstable vulnerable plaque by ulceration or rupture
What are subendocardial infarctions?
Infarctions involving the inner portion of the heart wall, and are more likely to be patchy and to have episodes of extension with additional infarction at the periphery