Coronary Artery Disease
Coronary artery disease is the most common cause of death in both men and women in the US. The condition involves the narrowing or blocking of the arteries in the heart, and can lead to chest pain, angina and eventually heart attack. Atherosclerosis, the deposition of cholesterol in the arteries, is the most common cause of coronary heart disease.
When coronary artery disease causes ischemia (the starvation of oxygen) in the atrium of the heart it can result in atrial fibrillation. When this is the case, atrial fibrillation can be treated using a class of drugs known as calcium channel blockers. These medications allow the arteries to relax and widen, and in turn increasing oxygen delivery to the muscles within the heart.
