A Brief Summary Of Atherosclerosis

Coronary artery disease (CAD) develops when plaque builds up in the narrow arteries of the heart. The arteries that are affected supply blood to your heart, oxygen, and numerous amounts of nutrients to the heart. The plaque that builds in the arteries is from the amount of cholesterol that is accumulated in the arteries. The plaque that builds within the arteries of the heart decrease the blood flow to the heart often resulting in chest pain (angina), shortness of breath, or other symptoms. This disease is often not diagnosed until the patient has a heart attack. The reason that coronary artery disease goes unnoticed is because this disease develops over decades. “Heart disease is the leading cause of

What is Atherosclerosis Disease?Well Atherosclerosis is a disease in which plaque builds up inside your arteries.Arteries are blood vessels that carry oxygen-rich blood to your heart and other parts of your body.The Atherosclerosis Disease is caused by high blood pressure,smoking,or high cholesterol.Did you know that about 360,000 people will die from the Atherosclerosis disease each year. Nikolai N. Anichkov was the one who discovered the Atherosclerosis disease.Atherosclerosis was discovered in 1964 by Anichkov.

Atherosclerosis can be a serious condition; it is when the arteries become clogged by fatty substances such as plaques or atheroma. This causes arteries to become narrow and harden which can restrict blood flow preventing organs from functioning properly (Williams 2000).

The development of an atherosclerotic plaque is relatively a very a complicated process where Plaque rupture accounts for about 76% of fatality lead by thrombi. The evolution of atherosclerosis begins with foam cell accumulation where the macrophages accumulate within arterial wall intima, progresses to form fatty streak where further accumulation of intra and extracellular lipids, this is a potentially reversible stage (Greenland p, 2013) further atheroma/fibroatheroma forms where cholesterol and phospholipids accumulate intramurally. This is a vulnerable state as it is predisposed to spontaneous rupture by inflammation and thrombus deposition may occur. Hemodynamic changes during this stage may cause ischemia or silent infarction, if large plaque rupture total occlusion may cause myocardial infarction or sudden cardiac death. Finally a complex lesion can develop where fibro muscular tissue can be seen with repair efforts followed by repeated plaque formation, this may slowly increase in size and produce significant arterial narrowing.

The current epidemic of coronary heart diseases continues to increase as “cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death globally resulting in about 30% of deaths annually” (Jaleta, Gudina, & Getinet, 2014) and with Atherosclerosis being one of the top diseases among African Americans and obese children. Atherosclerosis is described as the disease of clogged arteries from buildup of plaque, causing arteries to become narrow, thick, and stiff which makes blood flow very difficult to pass. As many factors do contribute to the growth of this disease, this literature review will discuss the factors of the African American race as well as children being affected by Atherosclerosis. The substances of the plaque is usually composed of cholesterol, fat, and calcium which sticks together to harden over time in the walls of the arteries. As a result of such action, narrowed arteries can cause blood clots which can overtime lead to a heart attack. Although it is a treatable condition, lots of preventable methods are required to see improvements such as nutrition and exercise.

Atherosclerosis a chronic, inflammatory disease of the medium and large arteries, peripheral arteries, carotid and the aorta is a major contributor to the development of cardiovascular disease and the leading cause of death worldwide. Aherosclerotic plaque formation is a local process in the vessel wall with symptoms in the specific area, though the possibility of plaque formation at the same time and in different areas of the vasculature, regards the disease as systemic one1-3. Furthermore it is recognized that atherosclerotic carotid arteries pose a substantial risk of ipsilateral cerebrovascular events, with reported annual ischemic stroke rates ranging from .35% to 1.3% in asymptomatic patients with moderate stenosis4,5 and from .5% to

Coronary heart disease, also known as coronary artery disease, is a dysfunction of the cardiovascular system in which the heart muscle is damaged as a result of a blocked coronary artery (VanMeter & Hubert, 2014, p.233). This condition includes both partial, temporary cardiac ischemia, or angina pectoris, and total obstruction of a coronary artery, also referred to as myocardial infarction or heart attack (VanMeter & Hubert, 2014, p.233, 239-241). Occlusion of the arteries of the heart results in inadequate oxygenation of the myocardium and eventual irreversible damage and cell death. Atherosclerosis, a leading cause of coronary heart disease, starts with an injury and progresses to damaged endothelial cells within an artery. The damage can be caused by smoking, hypertension, toxins, among other factors. The injury and damage causes inflammation and accumulation of white blood cells and lipids in the inner lining of the artery (VanMeter & Hubert, 2014, p.234-235). As time goes on, plaque forms and inflammation continues prompting platelets to stick to the walls of the artery, and eventually causes obstruction of the vessel. (VanMeter & Hubert, 2014, p.235).

Atherosclerosis can be associate with atheromata’formation, which are raised, fibroadipose plaques that develop within the intimal layer of the artery or within the innermost layers of the tunica media. Some atheromata undergo calcification or ulceration, and mural thrombi can form over complicated and uncomplicated atheromata. As a result, can block or diminished the blood flow in the artery, turning tissue and organs oxygen deprived.

Coronary artery disease (CAD) is when the arteries that supplies blood for the heart muscle gradually hardens and thickens (artherosclorosis) because of the buildup from salt, fat, cholesterol and other substances (plaque) on their inner walls. This process leaves the heart with a lack of oxygen and blood, forcing it to work harder (high blood

Atherosclerosis is a chronic disease that can beginning in childhood or adolescence. Atherosclerosis is defined as a buildup of fatty material, such as cholesterol, in the walls of blood vessels. There are three progressive states of excess fatty material in the blood vessel walls: fatty streak, intermediate lesion, and a fibrous lesion. A fatty streak is a line of yellow fatty material in the blood vessel wall, and as the streak becomes larger it is then called an intermediate lesion then a fibrous lesion. A fibrous lesion can be occlusive of non-occlusive. The occlusive lesion forms under the endothelium of the blood vessel and grows towards the lumen of the blood vessel cause the lumen to become smaller. A non-occlusive lesion forms under

CAD is when the heart is subjected to a reduction in blood flow that negatively affects its ability to pump (McCance & Huether, 2014). The leading cause of CAD is atherosclerosis (Porter & Kaplan, 2011). Atherosclerosis is when fatty deposits, known as atheromas, deposit between the tunica intima and tunica media of medium and large coronary arteries (Porter & Kaplan, 2011). Macrophages and inflammatory cytokines detect the injury to arterial lining and attempt to protect the body by engulfing it and covering with fibroblasts and collagen (McCance & Huether, 2014). This results in the formation of an atherosclerotic plaque. As time passes the atherosclerotic plaque increases in size and causes complete or partial occlusion of a coronary artery

Cardiovascular disease is conditions that involve narrowed or blocked blood vessels that can lead to stroke, heart attack, and chest pain. Heart disease is the leading cause of death in men and women in the United States (CDC 2015). Numerous problems in the heart lead to atherosclerosis. Atherosclerosis is an active process involving molecular signals that produce altered cellular behavior as well as endothelial dysfunction and a subsequent inflammatory response (Swain 2013). Atherosclerosis is a condition that is developed when plaque builds up in the walls of the arteries. The blood is not able to flow correctly because of the buildup of plaque narrows the arteries. Plaque is a combination of cholesterol, cells, and debris. Atherosclerosis is the most common type of heart disease, killing over 370,000 people annually (CDC 2015). It is the cause of strokes, heart attacks, and peripheral vascular disease. High blood pressure, smoking, or high cholesterol damage the endothelium and it begins atherosclerosis. The damage starts the creation of plaque. LDL enters the wall of artery when it crosses the endothelium, which causes the white blood cells to digest the LDL. There are many ways to prevent and treat atherosclerosis like the change of lifestyle, healthy eating, exercising, and medications.

Although it was believed for a long time that second-hand smoke only affects smokers, since the early 1980s it has been known that non-smoking family members of smokers have twice the risk of experiencing heart attacks than those in non-smoking households. Consequently, people living and working in environments that contain second-hand smoke suffer coronary heart diseases (CHD) due to the toxic substances of tobacco smoke.

Coronary artery disease (CAD) is a condition where the coronary artery is narrowed by fatty plaque that restricts the flow of blood to the cardiac tissues. When too little blood reaches the cardiac cells, the cells are deprived of oxygen and nutrients. Eventually, the cardiac cells die and leave permanent tissue damage. On the other hand, if blood flow is totally blocked and the cardiac tissues are deprived of oxygen and nutrients, a heart attack ensues.

Atherosclerosis is a systemic disease affecting the entire arterial tree. The pathophysiology of atherosclerosis is the same with the inflammatory process. A persistent elevation in circulating low-density lipoprotein (LDL) levels in the body is one of the most important causes for the initiation and progression of atherosclerosis. Characterized by the development of plaque insides of arteries, which later hardens and narrows the arteries, leads to a reduced supply of oxygen-rich blood to organs and other parts of the body (Mitchell & Sidawy, (1998). In turn, lead to various serious cardiovascular complications like heart attack, stroke, and even death. Changes in endothelial function and morphology are the cardinal signs of hypertension (HTN).