Atherosclerosis Disease - Definition

Atherosclerosis disease is a medical term which can be further divided into 2 Greek words:

• Athero: paste or glue

• Sclerosis: hardness

Atherosclerosis is a condition which is recognized by the accumulation of cholesterol, fat deposits, calcium, cellular debris and other waste products on the endothelial (inner) lining of an artery (usually big-sized and medium-sized arteries).

These deposits are called plaques. With aging, the arteries will lose their elasticity and become harder.

When these Plaques increase in size, they can partially block the affected artery causing stagnation of the blood flow. The real harm from plaques occurs when they breakdown causing the release of multiple clots in the blood stream (this condition is called thrombosis).

The blood clots are carried by blood to different parts of the body. Eventually, they will completely block a blood vessel; depriving the tissues supplied by it from blood stream and oxygen nourishment causing tissue death vc (ischemia).

Atherosclerosis disease symptoms depend mainly on the place of the affected arteries:

Sometimes, when atherosclerosis affects the arteries of the penis in men; it causes erectile dysfunction.

Atherosclerosis disease is a cumulative condition, which means that many factors accumulate and work together to cause it. You can simply prevent atherosclerosis disease by preventing its causes.

If you are smoker, you are certainly at a high risk to develop atherosclerosis and coronary heart diseases. Tobacco is well known with its harmful effect in increasing viscosity of blood, thus increasing the chance for blood stagnation and plaque formation.

Do yourself a great favor and try to quit smoking right now.

Hypertension increases your susceptibility to develop stroke, renal problems, and congestive heart diseases. According to American Heart Association, the average blood pressure must be less than 130/85.

Your physician can prescribe you long term drugs to successfully control your elevated blood pressure.

High cholesterol and triglycerides levels in your blood raise your chance to have atherosclerosis and heart diseases.

Both of them indicate the accumulation of fatty deposits in your blood, by time these deposits will precipitate on the inner walls of your arteries. Try always to keep the measures of both of them in constant check.

Make your diet healthier by eating fresh fruits and vegetables, and minimize your daily intake of saturated fats and trans-fatty acids.

For cooking, use always olive oil (monounsaturated) instead of other types of oils (polyunsaturated). You should try to take your daily essential protein intake from seafood (fish) and plants (beans and legumes).

Taking medication for the treatment of atherosclerosis disease is inadequate because the harm has already occurred. Drugs will only reduce your secondary symptoms.

Mainly, anticoagulants are given to reduce the clot formation. A vaso-dilator drug can only relief some symptoms.

Surgery is always the final solution for treatment of life-threatening situations.

Both balloon angioplasty and coronary artery bypass surgery help in widening the narrowed arteries and increase blood flow to the heart.

Endartectomy is the type of surgery, which is performed to treat large atheromatous as well as calcified arterial obstruction. Woven plastic tube grafts can replace a whole segment of atherosclerosed peripheral vessels.

As you may probably see, severe consequences come because of atherosclerosis. You can do something to prevent it, why don't give it a try before it is too late?

If you let atherosclerosis occurring, than you cannot go back, but have to resign to the bad happenings. Do you want to undergo all this?

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