Angina pectoris is chest pain caused by coronary artery disease, a progressive disease where artery blockage reduces blood flow to the heart and deprives the heart muscle tissue of oxygen. The resulting tissue damage reduces the ability of the heart to pump blood and can lead to further complications. Conventional treatment for angina pectoris focuses on controlling symptoms and managing risk factors to slow the progression of coronary artery disease. Treatment for angina pectoris includes medication, surgery and lifestyle changes. Recent studies suggest that stem cell therapy may also be a useful treatment for angina pectoris.
Drug Treatment
The most common drug treatment for angina pectoris is sublingual nitroglycerin, which is prescribed for immediate relief from acute chest pain or to prevent chest pain before engaging in activities that are likely to cause angina. In addition, doctors may prescribe various medications to help reduce the risk factors and causes of angina pectoris. They include:
* Drugs that inhibit the aggregation of blood platelets that form plaques on the walls of blood vessels. The most common of these are aspirin and Plavix.
* Beta blockers like metoprolol, atenolol and propranolol reduce overall consumption of oxygen and can reduce the frequency and severity of chest pain.
* Calcium channel blockers like amlodipine, diltiazem and verapamil relax smooth muscle tissue, the type of tissue the heart is made of, and help dilate the blood vessels feeding the heart.
* ACE inhibitors (angiotensin-converting enzyme) reduce the rates of death, myocardial infarction and stroke in patients with coronary artery disease.
Surgical Treatment
The most common options for surgical treatment for angina pectoris are revascularization therapy, including angioplasty and stents and coronary bypass surgery.
Angioplasty involves re-opening the vessels to the heart, often by passing a tube through the affected arteries.
Stents may be inserted into the affected arteries to hold them open and allow improved blood flow.
Coronary bypass surgery is a grafting technique that uses blood vessel tissue taken from the patient to create new pathways for blood flow to the heart.
Lifestyle and Home Remedies
Lifestyle changes can help reduce angina pectoris in both frequency and severity, as well as slow the progression of the disease. The most commonly recommended changes lifestyle and home remedy treatment for angina pectoris include:
* A heart healthy diet, with whole grains and a balance of nutrients to help reduce high cholesterol levels.
* Smoking cessation therapy if needed to help patients quit smoking.
* An exercise regimen as directed by a doctor
Alternative Therapies
Patients with angina pectoris may benefit from acupuncture, electrical nerve stimulation and spinal cord stimulation. Nutritional supplements are sometimes used as treatment for angina pectoris, including gingko biloba, green tea, garlic, turmeric and ginger, all of which can help lower cholesterol. Since angina can be caused and exacerbated by stress, stress management techniques, such as yoga, biofeedback, shiatsu and meditation may also be useful as treatment for angina.
Stem Cell Therapy for Angina Pectoris
A series of studies shows that the use of autologous stem cells injected directly into the heart may help heart tissue regenerate itself after damage from coronary artery disease. The most common techniques include the use of stem cells derived from bone marrow. Patients treated this way often show significant improvements in their condition, with improvements in frequency of angina attacks, exercise tolerance and oxygen perfusion. In the United States, treatment for angina pectoris with stem cells is in widespread human clinical trials with very promising results.