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Angina, unstable

How common is unstable angina?

Angina is very common.

In the United States, about 9.8 million people are living with this condition.

Source:
American Heart Association.
Heart Disease and Stroke Statistics - 2009 Update.
Available at http://circ.ahajournals.org/cgi/reprint/CIRCULATIONAHA.108.191261 (accessed on 13 February 2009).

¹ We don't know exactly how many of these people have unstable angina and how many have stable angina. We also don't know how many people with stable angina go on to get unstable angina.

Angina is usually a symptom of

coronary artery disease
This is when clumps of fat (called plaques) build up on the smooth lining of the arteries supplying the heart with blood (the coronary arteries). Over time, these plaques make the arteries narrower, stiffer and rougher. This is called atherosclerosis. Less blood can get through the narrowed arteries which means less oxygen gets to the heart. This can result in angina or a heart attack.

coronary artery disease. That's the most common cause of death in the United States. This disease causes about 1 in every 5 deaths.

Here's what else we know about people who get angina.

Each year between 2 and 6 in every 100 adults in the United States have angina.
Your chance of having angina depends, in part, on your age, sex and ethnic background. It is most common in white men and black men ages 75 to 84. Angina is more common in black women than in other women.
The number of people living with angina is going up, as are the numbers of people with

obesity
If your body stores more energy than you need for daily functioning, this can make you overweight. The excess energy is stored in your fat cells. If your weight goes above a certain level, doctors call this obesity. Obesity is considered a medical condition. The excess weight can be a strain on your bones and joints. And if you are obese, you're more likely to get other diseases. Doctors have developed a scale for telling how much excess weight you have. This measure, called the body mass index (BMI), depends on your height.

obesity and

diabetes
Diabetes is a condition that causes too much sugar to circulate in your blood. It happens when your body stops making a hormone called insulin (type 1 diabetes) or when insulin stops working (type 2 diabetes).

diabetes. Both obesity and diabetes can make you more likely to get coronary artery disease, which causes angina.

Sources for the information on this page:

American Heart Association.Heart Disease and Stroke Statistics - 2009 Update.Available at http://circ.ahajournals.org/cgi/reprint/CIRCULATIONAHA.108.191261 (accessed on 13 February 2009).

This information was last updated on May 11, 2009

This information is for educational use only, and is not a substitute for prompt professional medical advice. Readers should always consult a physician or other professional for advice and treatment.
© BMJ Publishing Group Limited 2009. All rights reserved.

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