A heart attack is an injury to the heart muscle caused by a loss of blood supply. It usually occurs when a blood clot blocks the flow of blood through a coronary artery — a blood vessel that feeds blood to a part of the heart muscle. Interrupted blood flow to your heart can damage or destroy a part of the heart muscle. http://www.mayoclinic.com ____________________________________________ (10) Drug-Eluting Stents  In spite of the technician’s subliminal suggestion about dying like John Denver, the angiogram was successfully completed. And, to the doctors’ surprise, I did not have any significant blockage in the problematic artery. At the time of my heart attack, though, I apparently did have a large clot that blocked the blood flow in the artery. This was not the same as my earlier problems with a slowly narrowing artery, however; this time, apparently, some vulnerable plaque had ruptured and blocked the artery, most likely at the site of the stent. In the next few months, news started to surface about problems associated with drug-eluting stents: researchers had discovered that for about three percent of the population, the use of drug-eluting stents greatly increased the risk of a fatal heart attack. Back when my drug-eluting stent had been inserted, the recommended post-operation protocol was to use aspirin and Plavix (a medication that prevents coagulation of blood) for the first six months after the stent is put in -- a recommendation I had closely followed. My heart attack occurred fourteen months after that drug-eluting stent was placed in my artery, and eight months after I discontinued the Plavix. Now, the medical experts recommend that stent patients continue on aspirin and Plavix indefinitely. And I take them, religiously. February 22, 2007