Various medications can also be used to reduce the risk of heart attack or coronary heart disease. Surgery is an option for those victims of coronary heart disease who cannot be helped via lifestyle changes or medication. There are several types of heart surgery, including coronary angioplasty and coronary artery bypass. Coronary angioplasty involves inserting a catheter into a leg artery and threading it up into the partially blocked coronary artery. Then, a balloon at the tip of the catheter is inflated, which compresses the plaque against the wall of the artery and allows more blood to flow through.
Heart disease does seem to run in some families.
If your parents or grandparents have a history of high blood cholesterol, high blood pressure, diabetes mellitus, or are overweight, then there is greater chance that you will have these same heart disease risk factors. Although we cannot change our family history, modifications can always be made in diet, exercise, stress management, and other lifestyle factors that affect heart disease risk. If you have had a heart attack, exercise can improve your chances of survival. Of course, it is important to consult your physician before starting a new exercise program or dramatically increasing activity level to determine the type and amount of exercise that would be most appropriate. Evidence has existed for an inflammatory process contributing to the formation of plaque.