pathology and heart attack

Doctors and scientists working in pathology are experts in illness and disease. They use their expertise to
support every aspect of healthcare, from guiding doctors on the right way to treat common diseases, to
using cutting-edge genetic technologies to treat patients with life-threatening conditions.

Pathologists play a critical role in research, advancing medicine and devising new treatments to fight
viruses, infections and diseases like cancer.

In the last 100 years, we’ve seen significant reductions in illnesses such as polio across the world, as well
as major advances in blood transfusion, vaccination and treatment of inherited conditions. This is all
thanks to the pioneering work of pathologists.

Pathology: The study of disease. Pathology has been defined as "that branch of medicine which treats of
the essential nature of disease." The word "pathology" comes from the Greek words "pathos" meaning
"disease" and "logos" meaning "a treatise" = a treatise of disease. The word "pathology" is sometimes
misused to mean disease as, for example, "he didn't find any pathology" (meaning he found no evidence
of disease). A medical doctor that specializes in pathology is called a pathologist. Pathologists are
experts at interpreting microscopic views of body tissues.

A heart attack is a layperson's term for a sudden blockage of a coronary artery. This blockage, which
doctors call a coronary artery occlusion, may be fatal, but most patients survive it. Death can occur
when the occlusion leads to an abnormal heartbeat (severe arrhythmia) or death of heart
muscle (extensive myocardial infarction). In both of these situations, the heart can no longer pump
blood adequately to supply the brain and other organs of the body. Almost all heart attacks occur in
people who have coronary artery disease (coronary atherosclerosis). So, this photo essay will review the
structure (anatomy) of the normal coronary artery, the structural abnormalities (pathology) of the

coronary artery in atherosclerosis, and the effect of these abnormalities on the heart.