October 17, 2013, ST. LOUIS - Recent news reports indicate former President George W. Bush had a 95 percent blockage in a coronary artery in August before having stents implanted. Some have wondered how close a blockage that serious can be.
According to Michael Lim, MD, co-director of the Center for Comprehensive Cardiovascular Care (C4) at Saint Louis University Hospital, while the issue is serious and needs to be addressed, it does not mean a heart attack is imminent.
"It doesn't increase the risk of a heart attack. It probably means that you have symptoms at some point of activity because your blood flow will be restricted," Lim told KMOX Radio's Fred Bodimer. "Just like if there are two lanes of a freeway that are closed, it will be harder to get to the other side if there's enough cars going through."
Lim says that's "stable plaque" that has been in the ateries for a while, allowing the heart to compensate over time and can be treated with medicine and a stent. Unstable plaque he says is the real danger, he told Bodimer, equating it to a crash that ties up all lanes of the freeway causing chaos.
For more information about coronary artery disease, click here.
