What are the treatments for Coronary Heart Disease?
Apart from adopting a healthy lifestyle and treatment for underlying chronic illnesses, like hypertension, diabetes and hyperlipidaemia, specific treatment for coronary heart disease may include medications, catheter intervention and cardiac surgery.
Medication:
- Aspirin and other anti-platelet drugs
- Beta blockers
- Vasodilators
- Angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEI)
- Calcium channel blockers
- Lipid lowering drugs
Catheter intervention:
Percutaneous coronary intervention (commonly known as “balloon angioplasty”): If there is severe narrowing or blockage revealed during coronary angiogram, the doctor will perform balloon angioplasty by using a special balloon to dilate the blood vessel and a suitable stent will be placed there to maintain the patency of the blood vessel. Complications of this procedure includes bleeding, heart attack, stroke and death.
Cardiac surgery
Coronary artery bypass surgery (commonly known as “bridging surgery”): It is a major open-heart surgery. The doctor creates a bypass using a vessel from another part of your body to allow blood to flow around the blocked area through the main artery to the damaged heart muscles. The surgery may cause severe complications and thorough discussion with the doctor is needed.