Comparative study on atherosclerotic involvement of the major coronary arteries

Atherosclerosis is the commonest and the most important of the arterial diseases affecting the aorta, coronaries and cerebral arterial systems. Coronary artery disease accounts for an overwhelming majority (about 80%) of cardiovascular sudden deaths. The present study was conducted to compare the atherosclerotic involvement of the major coronaries. The study duration was of 2 years & included 120 medicolegal postmortem cases. The major coronary arteries were sectioned transversely at intervals of not more than 0.3 cm as well as longitudinally, up to its ostia. Sections were taken from the affected coronary arteries and sent for histopathology. The data was evaluated statistically. The total prevalence of coronary atherosclerosis was found to be 69.1%. The coronary artery most often involved by atherosclerosis was LCA and least affected was the circumflex artery.