What is the blood supply for coronary artery ?

One may recall some stunningly simple facts from our high school biology classes that every living cell needs energy on a moment to moment basis. Blood vessels which take care of the vital organ’s energy supply also need the same blood (Nutrients /Oxygen) for its own survival. Coronary arteries carry about 250 ml of blood  every minute , 24/7  supplying ATP enriched fuel to the heart. Who is feeding these delicate vessels which carry on this life-sustaining work ?   It is easier to assume the three layers of the blood vessels which are bathed with blood would never suffer from Ischemia. Reality is different .Blood vessels do suffer from Ischemia.We do have evidence medial necrosis, plaque instablity , fibrous cap disruptions may be due to  a vascular insult or vessel wall energy deficit. The much debated  entities like endothelial erosion and dysfunction are  often atributed to mechanical stress , sympathetic spike , or smoke . This may be a virtual guess as no one knows what causes these. It could well be a patchy Ischemia due to endothelial perfusion defect from within or a vasavasoral dysfunction from outside. Coronary ulcers some times mimic gastric ones and guess the cause ! yes it is mucosal ischemia !) *Ischemic ulcers in GI tracts can be common   (Schweiz Rundsch Med Prax. 1993 Jun 15;82(24):709-13) Image source http://www.wikidoc.com                                       How does coronary artery gets it blood supply ? Busy ...
Source: Dr.S.Venkatesan MD - Category: Cardiology Authors: Tags: Uncategorized Source Type: blogs