ABSTRACT
Coronary artery disease (CAD) is caused by atherosclerosis in the coronary arteries. Serious complications of CAD, notably acute myocardial infarction (AMI), is nearly always caused by a thrombus formed on top of a ruptured or eroded atherosclerotic plaque (1,2). The risk of plaque rupture is related to the extent of atherosclerosis. However, the composition of the plaques may be even more important, because plaques with a high content of lipid and macrophages and a thin overlying fibrous cap are particularly prone to rupture (1,2).
