Pathologic changes lead to coronary artery disease. Constricted or occluded coronary vessels result in diminished blood flow and hence acute oxygen deficiency. The patient suffers from an angina pectoris attack. This is perceived as an acute attack of pain in the left chest. When pain occurs at a certain level of physical activity this is called stable angina.
Unstable angina is when it occurs at rest or at varying levels of exertion.
D rugs used so far have been aimed at relieving the pain. Attempts are made to widen the coronary vessels or to lower the cardiac oxygen requirement. And, parallel to this, to dissolve the blood clots causing an angina attack using thrombolytics. In addition, antithrombotics are used to inhibit thrombus development. However, therapy is so far not yet satisfactory.