A man enters the hospital complaining of chest pain. His history includes smoking, a stressful job, a diet heavy in saturated fats, lack of exercise, and high blood pressure. Although he is not suffering from a heart attack, his doctor explains to him that a heart attack is quite possible. What did the chest pain indicate?

Angina pectoris

Explanation:

Angina pectoris is a medical condition that is a result of a damage or disease in a major coronary blood vessel due to the imbalance between myocardial blood supply and the oxygen supply.

Symptoms include chest pain and if the symptoms persists it can lead to heart attack.

Therefore, the man who came presenting chest pain must be having Angina pectoris due to blockage of his coronary vessels due to his unhealthy lifestyle (smoking, diet full of saturated fats and lack of exercise)

The doctors prediction is right, there is a possibility he might suffer a heart attack.

The chest pain is an indicator of Coronary heath diseases in the man.

The pain in the chest is symptoms of Angina Pectoris. It is a cardiac problem cause by deposits of saturated fats, and tar as plaques from his cigarette smoking habits on the wall of his coronary arteries. This narrows these arteries leading to spasm and occlusion.

Besides Nicotine from his smoking habits can hardened his coronary blood artery, narrowing these vessels, which may lead to occlusion and the chest pain.

His sedentary life style of lack of exercises reduces oxygen supply to the heart muscles (ischemia), this further weakened this muscles.

His high blood pressure promote hardening of the artery further narrowing it.

Collectively, effect of these factors on the coronary arteries, occluded blood paths, reducing blood, nutrients and oxygen to the affected part, causing pain (Angina) which may results in heart attack.