All news to me ("endothelial damage"?)
Interested in the part about rupture of soft plaque being "what causes heart attacks".

Surely, not the only cause, though, right?

I would be happy if someone more knowledgable than me, could provide information about calcium scores - for instance, how they're measured, and whether there aren't other heart attack precipitators and if so, what? What are considered the most reliable calcium score? Also, overall, more about plaque - inflammation, hard vs soft, and whether it can be reduced,>

and More.

I'm presently trying to decide what cardiac sub-speciality most pertains to my issues and this would help (interventional cardiologist vs electrophysiologist, general cardiologist and/or other)?

I have heart rhythm problems (AFIB, tachycardia, ways of evaluating these problems),. I also have an inherited lipid disorder (one sibling died suddenly in his sleep of some heart issue - was about to have another stent implanted, so his plaque deposits must have factored).

I feel I need more testing (so far only lipid panels, routine EKGs, a few echocardiograms, chest Xrays, a dobutamine stress test 7 years ago (can't have treadmill test because of orthopedic problem). I've also had a few periods monitoring hb prompted by unprovoked tachycardia - the last monitoring was a week, the tachycardia lasted three weeks,. (Other?)

I'd like to have more tests done, feeling heart has not been adequately evaluated , especially because I'm looking at a possible Watchman procedure. Thinking of: calcium test of heart and aortic valves, C+reactive protein high sensitivity blood test, another stress test (as sensitive as possible), and an HbAic test. Whatever other ways there are to check out regurgitating valves (mitral valve, tricuspid, aortic - especially, the latter). Would like to check for blockages considering the decades of very high lipid tests even though they are presently (just barely) within norms. Prefer if possible to avoid an angiogram. because of the risks, but bearing in mind that one sib died two years ago. (He had had decades of very high lipids and a heart attack before he was even forty,ent and was at the time of his death, awaiting placement of another stent).

Wondering if there's a way to check why I have the arrhythmias (paroxysmal Afib, lasts many hours but asymptomatic and a recent unprovoked period of constant tachycardia, lasting three weeks.)

My present cardiologist prescribes me daily Xarelto
and PRN Metoprolol (12.5 - 25 mg.) The first time I took it (the full 25 mcg) almost knocked me out. He seems too casual about my arrhythmias - about everything.