Infarction Definition:

Stedman's defines an infarction as a:

"Sudden insufficiency of arterial or venous blood supply...."

The area of muscle or other tissue damaged by the infarction is known as the infarct. 

Thus, Schmidt describes an infarction as:

"Infarction: the process which leads to the formation of an infarct: i.e. the formation of a blood clot in a blood vessel, the resulting obstruction to the circulation, the swelling, the death of tissue etc."

A heart attack is often described, in medical terms, as a myocardial infarction, an infarction at the myocardium (the primary heart muscle).

REFERENCES:

• Pugh, M., Stedman's Medical Dictionary, 27th Ed. (Philadelphia: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, 2000), page 1173.
• Schmidt, J.E., Attorney's Dictionary of Medicine, Volume 3 (Newark, New Jersey: LexisNexis, 2009), page I-84