More on heart disease with no symptoms

Still in the news because of Russert (and perhaps George Carlin's death?).

Readers Questions: Heart Disease Without the Symptoms – Consults – Medical Research — Health – New York Times Blog

…  however, we have come to understand that the disease plays tricks on us. As fatty plaques form in the wall of an artery, they usually first grow outward, toward the exterior of the vessel, and do not protrude inward where they might block blood flow. These plaques can develop for decades without causing symptoms or showing up on electrocardiograms or nuclear scans, even under maximal exercise effort during a stress test. The non-obstructive plaques may not even show up on conventional angiograms, during which a cardiologist injects a fluid opaque to x-rays directly into the heart’s arteries.

We now know that these outward-bowing plaques cause the lion’s share of fatal heart attacks…

And see also this –

Could a Defibrillator Have Saved Tim Russert? – Well – Tara Parker-Pope – Health – New York Times Blog