Patient
Education Plan

By:
Leticia M. Kozbial-Brown
NUR/427

Introduction: Coronary Artery Disease (CAD) is the most common type of heart disease. It is the leading cause of death and illness in the United States. A number of conditions result from CAD, these include angina, congestive heart failure myocardial infarct, and sudden cardiac death. CAD occurs when the blood vessels providing blood to the heart muscle become narrowed or blocked. Arteries lose some of their elasticity as we age. The lumens of the arteries become narrowed from either fatty fibrous plaques or calcium plaque deposits. If there is mild restriction in blood flow, there may be no noticeable symptoms at rest. Symptoms such as chest pressure may occur with increased activity or stress indicating that the heart is having difficulty receiving adequate blood flow. Other symptoms include heartburn, nausea, vomiting, shortness of breath, or diaphoresis. When the blood flow is significantly reduced, severe symptoms , such as angina pectoris, arrhythmias, myocardial infarction or heart failure may occur. “Atherosclerosis is the most common cause of CAD and is linked to many risk factors, primarily elevated serum cholesterol levels, elevated blood pressure, and cigarette smoking. Other risk factors include heredity, obesity, lack of physical activity, stress and diabetes mellitus.” (Sommers, 2011) Of the 500,000 deaths annually from CAD, approximately 160,000 occur before age 65. Over half of these deaths occur in women, with African American women having the highest risk of death from heart disease of all populations. Diagnosis of CAD includes a thorough assessment of pain including location, severity and precipitating factors, blood tests, chest x-ray, echocardiogram, transesophageal echocardiogram (TEE), electrocardiogram (ECG or EKG), nuclear scans and stress testing. Patients often experience