Which condition occurs when blood flow to part of the heart muscle is blocked, causing heart cells to die?

Which condition occurs when blood flow to part of the heart muscle is blocked, causing heart cells to die?

• A. Heart attack
• B. Stroke
• C. Angina
• D. Arrhythmia

Answer: (A)

A heart attack happens when a coronary artery becomes blocked, stopping blood flow to part of the heart muscle. Without oxygen, those heart cells begin to die, which is the defining event of a myocardial infarction. This tissue death distinguishes a heart attack from angina, where reduced blood flow may cause chest pain but not yet cause heart tissue death. A stroke involves a blockage in blood vessels in the brain, not the heart, and an arrhythmia is an abnormal heart rhythm, not tissue death from an artery blockage. So the scenario described is a heart attack.

A heart attack happens when a coronary artery becomes blocked, stopping blood flow to part of the heart muscle. Without oxygen, those heart cells begin to die, which is the defining event of a myocardial infarction. This tissue death distinguishes a heart attack from angina, where reduced blood flow may cause chest pain but not yet cause heart tissue death. A stroke involves a blockage in blood vessels in the brain, not the heart, and an arrhythmia is an abnormal heart rhythm, not tissue death from an artery blockage. So the scenario described is a heart attack.