Coronary Artery Disease Questions

Most acute myocardial infarctions result from coronary occlusion secondary to hemorrhage within a plaque.

Complete occlusion of one coronary artery is uncommonly associated with significant lesions in other coronary arteries

The LAD and RCA systems are more commonly involved than the circumflex system.

Transmural infarctions are characterized by complete absence of viable myocardial cells in the infarct area.

Acute infarcts usually occur in chronic, severely narrowed vessels.

Question 2: Which of the following statements is true regarding the clinical features of coronary artery disease?

Severe LV dysfunction from ischemic heart disease results in LV enlargement.

Small distal vessel size on cineangiography is a contraindication to CAB.

A CASS score of 5 is equivalent to severe LV dysfunction.

Progression of known coronary lesions occurs in a predictable fashion.

Exercise LV function is typically depressed when compared to resting LV function.

Question 3: Which of the following statements is true regarding the diagnosis of coronary artery disease?

More severe stenoses have a less rapid progression towards total occlusion.

LVEDV can increase over 50% during exercise from myocardial ischemia.

LV diastolic function is impaired during late diastole.

Systolic but not diastolic function is reversed by CAB or PTCA.

LV dysfunction at rest cannot be improved by revascularization.

Question 4: Which of the following statements is true regarding the natural history of coronary artery disease?

Symptoms occurring when climbing one flight of stairs after eating a meal is class II angina.

Symptoms at rest is defined as unstable angina.

Symptoms occurring within 2 weeks of an acute myocardial infarction represents stable angina.

A patient successfully treated for an episode of unstable angina does not have a worsened prognosis.

Less than 25% of symptomatic patients will experience an acute MI within 10 years.

Question 5: Which of the following statements is true regarding the natural history of coronary artery disease?

Infarct size has a poor correlation with early mortality after myocardial infarction.

Use of thrombolytics has lowered hospital mortality after acute MI to less than 10%.

Most patients with significant CAD die from chronic heart failure.

Sudden death is uncommon in untreated CAD.

90% of patients treated medically will be alive in 5 years.

Question 6: Which of the following statements is true regarding the natural history of coronary artery disease?

Distal LAD lesions do not result in poorer survival compared to proximal LAD lesions.

Patients with 1-vessel and 2-vessel disease have equivalent survival at 5 years.

Hemodynamic instability successfully treated with IABP does not adversely affect outcome.

Severe resting LV dysfunction significantly reduces survival.

Left main disease and 3-vessel disease have equivalent survival at 5 years.