Entries Tagged 'Arteriosclerotic' ↓

Our arteries are channels for blood to flow and circulate throughout our bodies. However, when atherosclerosis set in, the arteries narrow and harden. This makes it difficult for the blood to flow as the same volume of blood has to flow through a now-restricted space. This can lead to all sorts of troubles like heart attacks and strokes.

Atherosclerosis sets in when cholesterol and fat build up in the blood to such an extent that they get deposited on the walls of the arteries. This process actually starts from when a person a child and ends up becoming a problem when the child turns into an adult and reaches the age of 50 or 60 years. The cholesterol and fat turn into plaque and make the channels of the arteries smaller. Sometimes, the build up is so great that the entire artery can get blocked. When this happens, it ends up cutting blood supply to the heart or brain leading to a heart attack or stroke.

Besides unhealthy eating habits, smoking, stress, obesity and sedentary lifestyle can also lead to atherosclerosis. Usually this is a hereditary condition. In other words, if there is a family history of the condition, the chances are high that you too can get the condition. Also, men are more prone to the condition than women.

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Imagine hundreds of cars zooming down an eight-lane highway. One lane disappears, and then another, until the same cars crawl bumper-to-bumper along a one-lane country road. That’s sort of what happens when you have atherosclerosis. Your arteries, the highways for your blood, harden and narrow, and the same amount of blood has to make its way through a much tighter space. This traffic jam in your arteries leads to all sorts of trouble, including heart attack and stroke.

Atherosclerosis occurs when cholesterol, fat, and other substances in your blood build up in the walls of your arteries. The process can begin when you’re a child, but it may not become a problem until you’re in your 50s or 60s. As this muck gathers in your arteries, it forms plaque. Plaque can clog or completely block arteries, cutting off blood flow to your heart or brain. That’s when you have a heart attack or stroke.

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When we think of a heart attack, we picture an old man, clutching his chest as he staggers. But this is a dangerously misleading view. According to a newspaper article, heart disease is the leading cause of death, deaths in government hospitals showed that about one in six females died of cardiovascular disease as opposed to about one in 48 females who died of breast cancer.

While there are factors like family history and the natural ageing process that put us at risk, there are many things we can do to protect our heart.

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Atherosclerosis heart disease or coronary heart disease, is the narrowing of the small blood vessels that supply blood and oxygen to the heart. The inside of the arterial blood vessel are thickened, hardened and stiffened, causing the space for blood flow to be narrowed or closed. This will decrease the oxygen supply to local or distant tissues.

The main symptoms of this is pain, poor organ function and bad general condition. The further consequences are tissue damage, occasionally acute damage because by stop of blood flow caused by a sudden blood clot formed in the narrowed areas.

The Mechanisms and Causes of Atherosclerosis
The inner walls of the arteries consist of an innermost layer of endothelial cells (surface cells) and under these a layer of smooth muscle cells. The changes by atherosclerosis take place under the endothelial cells and in this muscle layer. The changes consist of: A certain degree of cell proliferation or tumour, accumulating of cholesterol and fat. Deposition of calcium salts. Deposition of blood elements like fibrin. Continue reading →

Even though 73 percent of women know how to prevent heart disease, many of them are unaware of how to treat it when a diagnosis has been made.

In a survey of 1,979 women over age 35, only 55 percent said they understand how to treat heart disease. Respondents frequently wrong named prevention techniques such as exercise and healthy eating as treatment options, and less than 10 percent named actual treatments such as angioplasty and stent placement. Continue reading →

Arteriosclerotic heart disease or coronary heart disease is the leading cause of death in the U.S. For both women and men alike. Present are several factors which can rise this disease and some of the risks are based on family history and others are preventable. The main risk factors heart disease could include diabetes, physical inactivity, menopause in women, obesity, tobacco use, high blood pressure, infection that cause inflammation to the artery, high cholesterol level, and many more.

Coronary heart disease, or coronary artery disease, is the narrowing of the small blood vessels that supply blood and oxygen to the heart. This condition results from the accumulation of fatty substance and plaque. While the coronary arteries narrow, the flow of blood to your heart slows down or stops resulting in chest pain, or angina, shortness of breath, or heart attack.

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By atherosclerosis the inside of the arterial blood vessel are thickened, hardened and stiffened, causing the space for blood flow to be narrowed or closed. This will decrease the oxygen supply to local or distant tissues.

The main symptom of this is pain, poor organ function and bad general condition. The further consequences are tissue damage, occasionally acute damage because by stop of blood flow caused by a sudden blood clot formed in the narrowed areas.

Continue reading →