Q: My 40-year-old healthy sister recently had a heart attack. The doctor said it was caused by a tear in a blood vessel in her heart. What causes that?
A: Most heart attacks happen when a blood clot blocks an artery feeding the heart. But a small percentage result from a tear in the inner wall of one of the heart’s arteries. The resulting flap or swelling inside the artery wall obstructs normal blood flow. Known as a spontaneous coronary artery dissection, or SCAD, the condition strikes both sexes but is more common in women.
