Current treatment and future prospects for the management of acute coronary syndromes.
The impact of ischaemic heart disease on the burden of cardiovascular disease continues to escalate worldwide, although international statistics suggest a levelling off in Western world, in the less industrialised parts of the world the effects of this disease are only beginning to be documented, nonetheless, rapid advances have been made in the diagnosis and management of the acute coronary syndromes (the term which encompasses the protean clinical manifestations of the ischaemic process). The therapeutic strategies discussed in this article cover two broad subjects that have been found to be critical in the evolution of the disease:- i. interfering with the haemostatic balance by retarding the thrombotic process; ii. modifying local and systemic vasoconstricting stimuli.
Bhagat
K
K
Department of Clinical Pharmacology, University of Zimbabwe Medical School, Harare, Zimbabwe. kbhagat@healthnet.zw
D000208:Acute Disease; D000319:Adrenergic beta-Antagonists / Q000627:therapeutic use; D000806:Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme Inhibitors / Q000627:therapeutic use; D000925:Anticoagulants / Q000627:therapeutic use; D002121:Calcium Channel Blockers / Q000627:therapeutic use; D003327:Coronary Disease / Q000145:classification / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D010975:Platelet Aggregation Inhibitors / Q000627:therapeutic use; D011379:Prognosis; D014665:Vasodilator Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use
D000319:Adrenergic beta-Antagonists; D000806:Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme Inhibitors; D000925:Anticoagulants; D002121:Calcium Channel Blockers; D010975:Platelet Aggregation Inhibitors; D014665:Vasodilator Agents