What causes unstable angina?

My sister's angina pectoris has recurred recently and it is extremely painful. She suffers from unstable angina and doesn't know when an attack will occur, so she lives in fear every day. Now I am sick again and it is still painful. I have been to several hospitals before, but none of them could cure me. I really want to learn more about this disease, maybe I can help my sister. If we could find a way to relieve her pain, then my sister wouldn't have to endure the torture.

Unstable angina (acute coronary insufficiency; pre-infarction angina; worsening angina; intermediate syndrome) is characterized by a progressive increase in angina symptoms, new onset of rest or nocturnal angina, or the presence of prolonged angina. Unstable angina is a clinical manifestation between exertional stable angina and acute myocardial infarction and sudden death. It mainly includes initial angina pectoris, worsening exertional angina pectoris, rest angina pectoris with electrocardiogram ischemic changes and early angina pectoris after myocardial infarction. Due to its unique pathophysiological mechanism and clinical prognosis, if it is not treated appropriately and promptly, patients may develop acute myocardial infarction.

The causes of angina pectoris include: ① Coronary atherosclerosis leading to fixed stenosis of the lumen (usually more than 75%); ② Coronary artery spasm, such as variant angina; ③ Other coronary artery lesions: such as inflammation, embolism or congenital malformations; ④ Non-coronary artery lesions: such as aortic valve stenosis or aortic insufficiency, syphilitic aortitis, severe anemia, hyperthyroidism, paroxysmal tachycardia; ⑤ Hypotension, increased blood viscosity or slow blood flow; ⑥ Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, mitral valve prolapse, etc. Among them, the most important is coronary heart disease, namely coronary artery atherosclerosis stenosis and (or) coronary artery spasm.

It turns out that every disease has many causes, and it does not develop into a serious condition in a short period of time. Maybe my sister didn’t pay attention before, didn’t take it seriously when she had a minor illness, and didn’t get it checked. It will be too late to go to the hospital for examination when the condition becomes serious. So when you feel unwell, don’t force yourself to endure it, and don’t ignore it just because it’s a minor illness. Your carelessness may make you regret it in the future.