Myocardial infarction is a medical term commonly known as heart attack.1 According to the British Heart Foundation, there are approximately 103,000 heart attacks in the United Kingdom Every year and every seven minutes, someone dies of a heart attack.2 Before finding an appropriate treatment, we must understand the factors that cause myocardial infarction and the pathophysiology of the disease. From there, we are then able to determine effective treatments to administer for this condition. By definition, infarction is an area of ​​ischemic necrosis caused by blockage of arterial perfusion or venous drainage to the myocardium.3 Myocardial infarction is a form of ischemic necrosis. heart disease in which the severity of ischemia can cause myocardial cell death, followed by inflammatory cell infiltration and fibrous repair.3,4 Ischemia occurs when there is insufficient blood supply to respond at the request of the cells, leading to necrosis. This is primarily due to blockage of the coronary artery by thrombus resulting from atherosclerosis, preventing blood flow to the heart muscles.5 Atherosclerosis is a disease characterized by a buildup of fatty deposits in the arteries, causing them to narrow and hardening.4,6 This process begins with damage to the endothelial wall of the artery, followed by an inflammatory response of the body where monocytes and leukocytes move to the damaged area.7 These leukocytes accumulate cholesterol in blood, leading to the formation of atheroma. Fibrous tissue and calcium salts build up around the atheroma, forming hardened plaque causing the artery wall to harden and narrow. The stiffened wall of the artery is more likely to crack and suffer damage. When the platelets come into contact with the cracked surface of...... middle of paper ...... mostadoctor.co.uk/content/systems/haematology/clotting/physiology-clottingIntech [image from Internet]. c2011 [updated August 17, 2011; cited March 30, 2014]. Available at http://www.intechopen.com/books/tissue-engineering-for-tissue-and-organ-regeneration/cardiovascular-tissue-engineering-based-on-fibrin-gel-scaffoldsThe Journal of Biological Chemistry. t-PA is targeted to the regulated secretion pathway [Internet homepage]. c1997 [updated January 17, 1997; cited March 31, 2014]. Available at http://www.jbc.org/content/272/3/1976.shortHelms R, Quan D, Herfindal E et al. Textbook of Therapeutics: Drug and Disease Management. 8th ed. Lippincott William and Wilkins 2006. p610,611,829MedlinePlus. Thrombolytic therapy [Internet home page]. c2012 [updated June 18, 2012; cited March 31, 2014]. Available at http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/007089.htm