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Your Arterial Health: Arteriosclerosis and Atherosclerosis

Overview

Arteriosclerosis and atherosclerosis are sometimes used to mean the same thing, but there’s a difference between the two terms.

Arteriosclerosis occurs when the blood vessels that carry oxygen and nutrients from your heart to the rest of your body (arteries) become thick and stiff — sometimes restricting blood flow to your organs and tissues. Healthy arteries are flexible and elastic, but over time, the walls in your arteries can harden, a condition commonly called hardening of the arteries.

Atherosclerosis is a specific type of arteriosclerosis.

Atherosclerosis is the buildup of fats, cholesterol and other substances in and on your artery walls. This buildup is called plaque. The plaque can cause your arteries to narrow, blocking blood flow. The plaque can also burst, leading to a blood clot.

Although atherosclerosis is often considered a heart problem, it can affect arteries anywhere in your body. Atherosclerosis can be treated. Healthy lifestyle habits can help prevent atherosclerosis.

Symptoms

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Mild atherosclerosis usually doesn’t have any symptoms.

You usually won’t have atherosclerosis symptoms until an artery is so narrowed or clogged that it can’t supply enough blood to your organs and tissues. Sometimes a blood clot completely blocks blood flow, or even breaks apart and can trigger a heart attack or stroke.

Symptoms of moderate to severe atherosclerosis depend on which arteries are affected. For example:

When to seek medical attention

If you think you have atherosclerosis, talk to your doctor. Also pay attention to early symptoms of inadequate blood flow, such as chest pain (angina), leg pain or numbness.

Early diagnosis and treatment can stop atherosclerosis from worsening and prevent a heart attack, stroke or another medical emergency.

Causes

Development of atherosclerosisOpen pop-up dialog box

Atherosclerosis is a slow, progressive disease that may begin as early as childhood. Although the exact cause is unknown, atherosclerosis may start with damage or injury to the inner layer of an artery. The damage may be caused by:

Once the inner wall of an artery is damaged, blood cells and other substances often clump at the injury site and build up in the inner lining of the artery.

Over time, fatty deposits (plaque) made of cholesterol and other cellular products also build up at the injury site and harden, narrowing your arteries. The organs and tissues connected to the blocked arteries then don’t receive enough blood to function properly.

Eventually, pieces of the fatty deposits may break off and enter your bloodstream.

In addition, the smooth lining of the plaque may rupture, spilling cholesterol and other substances into your bloodstream. This may cause a blood clot, which can block the blood flow to a specific part of your body, such as occurs when blocked blood flow to your heart causes a heart attack. A blood clot can also travel to other parts of your body, blocking flow to another organ.

Risk factors

Hardening of the arteries occurs over time. Besides aging, factors that may increase your risk of atherosclerosis include:

Complications

The complications of atherosclerosis depend on which arteries are blocked. For example:

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Prevention

The same healthy lifestyle changes recommended to treat atherosclerosis also help prevent it. These include:

Just remember to make changes one step at a time, and keep in mind what lifestyle changes are manageable for you in the long run.

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Credit: Mayoclinic.org

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