What Is Coronary Microvascular Angina That Toni Braxton Has

Toni Braxton is diagnosed with coronary microvascular angina. The diseases starves parts of her boy of oxygenated blood and causes breathing problems. However, despite her microvascular angina she is joining and competing in the coming season of Dancing with the Stars, writes E! Online.

The Medical University of South Carolina describes Microvascular Angina (also known as Syndrome X) as a condition that occurs when the patient experiences chest pain but has no apparent coronary artery blockage. "This condition results from poor functioning of the tiny blood vessels that nourish the heart, arms and legs(8). Microvascular angina can occur during exercise or at rest. Reduced vasodilator capacity of the coronary microvessels is thought to be a cause of angina during exercise, but the mechanism of angina at rest is not known. Coronary microvascular spasm and resultant myocardial ischemia may be the cause of chest pain in a subgroup of patients with microvascular angina."

"One major association between microvascular angina and the insulin-resistance syndrome has arisen from terminological confusion.

"The term syndrome X was first used in the 1970’s to refer to a heterogeneous group of patients with chest pain and normal coronary angiograms.

"In the late 1980’s this concurrence of myocardial ischaemia and normal angiograms was called microvascular angina.
The term "metabolic" syndrome X was first used in the late 1980’s to describe a pathological insulin-resistant condition, characterised by high prevalences of non-insulin-dependent diabetes, hypertension, obesity, dyslipidaemia, and cardiovascular disease.

"The term insulin resistance syndrome is now preferred by many to refer to this pathological insulin resistant condition."

Texas Heart Institute writes that Angina is the pain one feels when a diseased vessel in heart (called a coronary artery) can no longer deliver enough blood to a part of the heart muscle to meet its need for oxygen. The heart's lack of oxygen-rich blood is called ischemia. Angina usually happens when one's heart has an extra need for oxygen-rich blood, such as during exercise. Other causes of angina can be emotional stress, extreme cold or hot temperatures, heavy meals, alcohol, and smoking.

"Microvascular angina is a type of angina where patients have chest pain but do not seem to have a blockage in a coronary artery. The pain in the chest is because the tiny blood vessels that feed the heart, arms, and legs are not working properly. Generally, patients cope well with this type of angina and have very few long-term side effects.

Lifestyle changes and medicine are the most common ways to control angina and provide treatment. In more severe cases, a procedure called revascularization may be necessary.