| Left anterior descending artery | |
|---|---|
 Sternocostal surface of heart. Anterior descending branch labeled at upper right | |
 | |
| Details | |
| Location | Heart |
| Source | Left coronary artery |
| Branches | Septals, diagonals |
| Supplies | Anterolateral myocardium, apex, interventricular septum, 45–55% of the left ventricle (LV) |
| Identifiers | |
| Latin | ramus interventricularis anterior arteriae coronariae sinistrae |
| Acronym(s) | LAD |
| TA98 | A12.2.03.202 |
| TA2 | 4143 |
| FMA | 3862 |
| Anatomical terminology | |
The left anterior descending artery (LAD, or anterior descending branch), also called anterior interventricular artery (IVA, or anterior interventricular branch of left coronary artery)[1] is a branch of the left coronary artery. It supplies the anterior portion of the left ventricle.[2] It provides about half of the arterial supply to the left ventricle and is thus considered the most important vessel supplying the left ventricle.[citation needed] Blockage of this artery is often called the widow-maker infarction due to a high risk of death.[3]
- ^ Barbey, C.; Desveaux, B.; Quilliet, L.; de Labriolle, A.; Magdelaine, B.; Krsticevic, L.; Pacouret, G.; Charbonnier, B. (April 2005). "[Angioplasty at the bifurcation of the anterior interventricular artery and diagonal artery]". Archives Des Maladies Du Coeur Et Des Vaisseaux. 98 (4): 317–324. ISSN 0003-9683.
- ^ Wilson, Alexander; Bhutta, Beenish S. (2022), "Anatomy, Thorax, Coronary Sinus", StatPearls, Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing, PMID 32491498, retrieved 2023-01-05
- ^ Topol, Eric J.; Califf, Robert M. (2007). Textbook of Cardiovascular Medicine. Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. p. 283. ISBN 9780781770125. Retrieved 6 November 2014.
The most worrisome type is the proximal left anterior descending (LAD) MI, often referred to as the widow-maker infarction, which carries a high mortality and is attributed to an occlusion of the LAD before or at the first septal perforator.