Which term is used for a heart attack?

• A. Atrial Fibrillation
• B. Myocardial Infarction
• C. Angina
• D. Cardiomyopathy

Answer: (B)

The term used for a heart attack is myocardial infarction. It occurs when a coronary artery becomes blocked, cutting off blood flow to a portion of the heart muscle. Without blood, that heart tissue begins to die, which is what “infarction” describes. This is why myocardial infarction is the precise medical name for a heart attack.

This differs from atrial fibrillation, which is an irregular or rapid heart rhythm rather than tissue death; from angina, which is chest pain caused by temporarily reduced blood flow that may indicate risk but does not necessarily involve heart muscle death; and from cardiomyopathy, which refers to chronic diseases of the heart muscle affecting its structure or pumping function rather than an acute blockage. In medical and exam contexts, myocardial infarction is the formal term for a heart attack, with STEMI and NSTEMI used to describe specific patterns of the infarction.