Arteriosclerosis

Arteriosclerosis is a non-inflammatory lesions of artery, it lead to arterial wall thickening, hardening, loss of flexibility and narrow lumen. Generally divided into atherosclerosis, arteriolar sclerosis and medial calcinosis. Their etiology, pathogenesis, pathological process and the damage to the body are very different, atherosclerosis is the most common in Arteriosclerosis. Many middle-aged people cause coronary heart disease due to atherosclerosis, for the elderly, it is the most cause of death. Small artery to small artery diffuse proliferative lesions, the occurrence and development of hypertension and diabetes and, to a certain stage of lesion development, can cause multiple organ dysfunction, the patient also has a great deal of harm. Middle artery calcification more common than the previous two, mainly involving the medium-sized arteries, commonly found in the limbs, especially lower limb arterial pulse action, arising from the middle metamorphic wall calcification, do not have obvious symptoms. Arteriosclerosis is a vascular disease as one grows older, often occur in adolescence and attack in old age. The incidence rate of Men is higher than women.

Artery wall is composition of the intima, middle membrane and outer membrane, according to diameter size, arteries can be divided into large, medium and small three-tier. If the main artery of the aorta and its major branches in the membrane into a layer containing a large number of elastic fibers, elastic, and it is also known as the elastic artery. Such as coronary artery, cerebral artery, renal artery and limb arteries, such as the middle-rich smooth muscle, it also known as muscular artery. Mean diameter of small arteries in the 1mm below the artery, is also a muscular artery, but not obvious in thin elastic membrane, the smooth muscle membrane of very small.

Atherosclerosis: The main affect large and medium-sized arteries, its etiology and pathogenesis are not fully understood, it has been recognized as high cholesterol, high blood pressure, smoking is the main cause of the disease risk factors. Lipid metabolism, blood passenger endothelial injury, platelet adhesion and accumulation of lipid yellow appearance of atherosclerosis, it is called atherosclerosis. Plaque gradually expanded to enable the lumen of arteries narrow, harden, causing the structure of organs and functional changes.

Arteriolar sclerosis: refers to diffuse hyperplasia of small artery disease, the occurrence of hypertension and diabetes. Arterioles started to spasm, followed by small-artery intima-under hyalinization, thickening of elastic fibers, with the course of progress, mid-level, glass-like outer membrane changes have taken place, followed by thickening middle, blood vessels harden, narrow lumen. Systemic small artery so that a corresponding reduction in the blood of many organs, organ ischemia, and a series of structural and functional damage, including heart, kidney and brain of the most significant impact. Small renal arteries, stenosis can occur a number of glomerular hyalinization, fibrosis, or renal sclerosis. The latter course, most of glomeruli can be removed and replaced by fibrous connective tissue, shrinking the size of the kidneys can occur eventually uremia. Small brain often associated with atherosclerosis of larger cerebral atherosclerosis coexist, the performance of lighter lesions dizziness, memory loss, can be re-occurrence of cerebral thrombosis, cerebral hemorrhage and brain softening. Systemic small artery can cause increased peripheral vascular resistance, increased resistance to ventricular ejection, left ventricular load increase, which led to cardiac hypertrophy, lesions continue to progress, can be caused by left ventricular expansion, and ultimately congestive heart failure can occur. Clinical degree of arteriosclerosis of the small estimated, with the exception of organ damage according to speculation, the most valuable and is easy fundus examination, fundus of the retina and retinal vascular changes in other organs may reflect changes in small arteries, especially is the intracranial lesions, such as kidney disease-oriented and, if necessary, can be used for renal biopsy. Prevention and treatment of small artery disease with hypertension.

Medial calcinosis: Lesions mainly involving small and medium-sized arteries, the cause is still unknown so far. Starting from the middle-aged disease, diseases increasing with age. Pathological changes in their muscle fibers for the middle arterial rupture, hyaline degeneration and necrosis, elastic disappear and replaced by the Organization become calcified, causing blood vessels stiffen, the extension of flexural buckling. Hardening of the arteries simply do not give rise to the middle lumen stenosis or rupture, it does not cause symptoms. Examination shows that the temporal artery and limb arteries harden, distorted, arterial systolic blood pressure increased. Aortic involvement in patients with a small number of his chest X-ray examination showed extension of aortic distortion. No clinical significance of this disease.