Causes of a Heart Attack: Medical Malpractice?

A heart attack happens if the flow of oxygen-rich blood to a section of heart muscle suddenly becomes blocked.

The two main causes of a Heart Attack are: 

Coronary Heart Disease (CHD)

CHD is a condition in which a waxy substance called plaque builds up inside of the coronary arteries. These arteries supply oxygen-rich blood to your heart. When plaque builds up in the arteries, the condition is called atherosclerosis. The buildup of plaque occurs over many years and eventually, an area of plaque can rupture inside of an artery. This causes a blood clot to form on the plaque's surface. If the clot becomes large enough, it can mostly or completely block blood flow through a coronary artery. If the blockage isn't treated quickly, the portion of heart muscle fed by the artery begins to die. Healthy heart tissue is replaced with scar tissue. This heart damage may not be obvious, or it may cause severe or long-lasting problems.

Coronary Artery Spasm:

A less common cause of heart attack is a severe spasm (tightening) of a coronary artery. The spasm cuts off blood flow through the artery. Spasms can occur in coronary arteries that aren't affected by atherosclerosis.  The cause, while not always clear, are:

Drugs, such as cocaine
Emotional stress or pain
Exposure to extreme cold
Cigarette Smoking

How do I know if there was Medical Malpractice?

The failure to diagnose or properly treat a heart attack is malpractice.  Doctors are required to perform certain tests to determine if a patient had a heart attack, the severity of it, and the damage caused by it. Failure to do this is malpractice.  Furthermore, failure to provide proper and timely treatment for a heart attack is malpractice.