Last Updated on May 17, 2025 by Williams Okechukwu
Unstable Angina Medical Term
Unstable angina is a medical condition that occurs when the heart muscle doesn’t receive enough oxygen and blood flow. It’s a type of chest pain that can lead to a heart attack and requires immediate medical attention.
Symptoms include:
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- Chest pain: Pain that feels like squeezing, tightness, burning, crushing, aching, or choking. It can feel like pressure or a dull ache.
- Pain that lasts longer than 20 minutes: Pain that persists or comes and goes.
- Pain that worsens: Pain that increases in severity.
- Pain that occurs at rest: Pain that happens when you’re not exerting yourself, like while sleeping or sitting quietly.
- Pain that doesn’t respond to medicine: Pain that doesn’t improve with rest or medication, like nitroglycerin.
- Pain that spreads: Pain that radiates to the arm, jaw, back, neck, shoulders, or stomach.
- Shortness of breath: Difficulty breathing.
- Sweating: Excessive sweating.
- Anxiety: Feeling anxious.
- Dizziness: Feeling dizzy.
- Nausea and vomiting: Feeling sick to your stomach or vomiting.
- Fatigue: Feeling tired
Causes of Unstable Angina
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Atherosclerosis
A buildup of plaque in the arteries that narrows and stiffens them. This can lead to blood clots that block the artery.
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Coronary artery spasms
The muscles in the heart’s arteries tighten, temporarily narrowing the arteries and blocking blood flow.
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Microvascular dysfunctionDamage to the small arteries that branch off the larger coronary arteries. This can prevent the arteries from expanding when the heart needs more oxygen.Blood clots
A blood clot can block an artery, especially if the artery has plaque buildup.
Unstable angina is caused by several conditions that reduce blood flow to the heart, including:
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Other risk factors for unstable angina include:
- Diabetes
- High blood pressure
- High cholesterol
- Smoking
- Substance abuse
- Family history
- Chronic kidney disease
- Anemia
Treatment for Unstable Angina
Unstable angina is treated with medications, lifestyle changes, and sometimes surgery. The goal of treatment is to reduce the risk of heart attack or stroke.
Medications
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- Nitroglycerin: Can be taken under the tongue or through an IV
- Blood thinners: Such as heparin, enoxaparin, or clopidogrel
- Beta-blockers: Such as propranolol or atenolol, drugs reduce the force and rate of your heartbeat
- Cholesterol-lowering medications: Such as statins or PCSK9 inhibitors
- Anti-anginal medications: Such as nitrates
- Medications to control blood pressure: Such as antihypertensives
- Medications to control anxiety: Such as anxiolytics
- Medications to control abnormal heart rhythms: Such as antiarrhythmics
Lifestyle changes
- Eat nutritious food
- Get regular physical activity
- Avoid tobacco products
- Manage conditions like diabetes, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol
Surgery
- Coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) or percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) may be recommended if you have a high risk of another angina attack or heart attack
Other therapies
- Enhanced external counterpulsation (EECP) therapy may be recommended if other treatments don’t work
Other types of heart attacks include:
- Non-ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (NSTEMI): A heart attack where there is some loss of blood supply, but the ECG doesn’t show the same changes as a STEMI.
- ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI): A heart attack that occurs when a coronary artery that supplies blood to the heart is completely blocked, causing a long interruption to blood flow and potentially extensive heart damage
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