Myocardial bridging occurs when a segment of an epicardial coronary artery (most commonly the left anterior descending artery) takes an intramyocardial course, with a band of myocardial muscle fibers (the 'bridge') overlying the arterial segment. During systolic contraction, the bridge compresses the tunneled arterial segment, causing transient vessel occlusion. While the majority of coronary flow occurs during diastole, hemodynamically significant bridges can impair late diastolic filling, cause endothelial dysfunction within the tunneled segment (promoting atherosclerosis at the proximal edge of the bridge due to altered shear stress), and trigger coronary vasospasm. Myocardial bridging is usually benign and found incidentally, but in some cases causes exertional angina, acute coronary syndrome (particularly during tachycardia which shortens diastolic filling time), ventricular arrhythmias, or sudden cardiac death. The nurse assesses chest pain characteristics, monitors ECG for ischemic changes especially during tachycardia or exercise, administers prescribed beta-blockers (first-line to reduce heart rate and prolong diastole) or calcium channel blockers, avoids nitrates (which can worsen compression by reducing vessel tone), educates patients about exertional symptoms and when to seek emergency care, and monitors for complications during...