SkillsUSA Medical Terminology Practice Test

A myocardial infarction describes death of heart muscle due to a sudden blockage of a coronary artery, cutting off the blood supply. This is the medical term for what people commonly call a heart attack. The chest pain or discomfort comes from heart muscle not getting enough oxygen, and the tissue can die if blood flow isn’t restored quickly. That’s why this option fits best: it names the event as infarction, meaning tissue death from ischemia. Angina is chest pain from temporarily reduced blood flow but without heart muscle death. A stroke is a brain event caused by interrupted blood supply to the brain. An aneurysm is a weakening and bulging of a blood vessel, which is a different vascular problem. So the term that specifically means heart muscle death due to ischemia is myocardial infarction. This is an emergency requiring prompt treatment to restore blood flow.