Coronary artery disease, angina pectoris, and myocardial infarction are some of the most frequently used medical terms in cardiovascular disease, but what each term means and how they relate to each other may not be clear to many people. Here, we will explain the connection and difference between the three. 1, coronary heart disease Coronary heart disease is short for atherosclerotic heart disease of the coronary arteries. The heart is beating constantly and needs a lot of oxygen and various nutrients, but they do not come directly from the blood in the heart chambers, but are supplied by the two blood vessels called coronary arteries (its shape seems to be a hat on the heart, hence the name) that grow on the left and right of the heart. If for some reason (such as atherosclerosis caused by high blood lipids) these two coronary arteries become narrowed, blood flow is not smooth, the heart muscle does not get enough blood nutrition, there will be myocardial ischemia, this is coronary heart disease, also known as ischemic heart disease. 2, angina What is the relationship between angina pectoris and myocardial infarction and coronary heart disease? First of all, angina pectoris. When suffering from coronary heart disease, due to reduced or poor blood flow in the coronary arteries, too many metabolites (such as lactic acid, etc.) accumulate in the myocardium and cannot be carried away by the blood, these products will stimulate the afferent sympathetic nerves of the heart, which are transmitted to the brain and produce pain, so angina is caused by myocardial ischemia, which is an important symptom of coronary heart disease. 3, myocardial infarction (referred to as infarction) When the larger branches of the coronary arteries are completely occluded (thrombosis), the myocardium supplied by this vessel is necrotic due to the lack of blood nutrition, called infarction, so the infarction is also coronary heart disease, and is the most serious consequence of coronary heart disease. Therefore, when the symptoms of angina pectoris appear, they should be actively prevented and treated, such as taking anti-platelet drugs and lipid-lowering drugs to prevent thrombosis and stabilize the plaque, otherwise it may develop into a heart attack and cause serious consequences, even life-threatening and sudden death. In summary, the relationship between the three can be summarized as follows: 1, coronary heart disease is a general term for myocardial ischemia; 2, angina is an important symptom of coronary heart disease aggravation; 3, heart attack is the most serious consequence of coronary heart disease. Angina pectoris and infarction can also be collectively referred to as coronary heart disease, which are different stages or different degrees of coronary heart disease development.