Atheroma

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Atheroma
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Atheroma

• Atheroma can be referred to as tiny fatty lumps
  which gets develop within blood vessels
  (arteries). These form as patchy areas of plaque
  and contribute to the hardening of arteries, a
  condition known as atherosclerosis.Atheromas do
  not get developed instantly but instead it takes
  months or years to grow, becoming larger and
  thicker. With passage of time, a patch of
  atheroma can make an artery narrower, restricting
  and reducing the blood flow through vessel.A
  danger that atheromas exhibit is their tendency
  to grow tiny cracks or rupture. When this
  happens, it can trigger the circulatory system to
  produce a blood clot (thrombosis) at the site of
  the atheroma. This can further lead to a complete
  obstruction of blood flow at the affected site,
  potentially causing a heart attack.

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What are the causes of atheroma?

• Atheromas are made up of mostly macrophage cells
  (a type of white blood cell) or debris,
  containing lipids (fats), calcium, and a variable
  amount of connective tissue. When these materials
  grow, they lead to the narrowing of the artery
  they are attached to.Atheromas do not occur in
  veins, the blood vessels responsible for
  delivering de-oxygenated blood back to the heart,
  as they are not subjected to the same hemodynamic
  pressure that the arteries are.The most
  important contributors to endothelial dysfunction
  or damage are hemodynamic disturbances (high
  blood pressure), hypercholesterolemia (high
  cholesterol levels), and inflammation.

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What are the causes of atheroma?
Continue

• Toxins that come from cigarettes, homocysteine,
  and wide-spectrum infectious agents can also
  contribute to atheroma development.However, the
  exact origins of atheromatous plaque are not well
  understood. These fatty streaks can be found in
  the artery walls of infants but are usually
  absorbed. But in some of the cases, incomplete
  absorption can contribute to atheromatous plaque
  later in life.

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Effects of Atheroma

• Atheromatous plaque causes partial or complete
  obstruction of an artery. In the majority of
  cases, a clot formation is responsible for
  complete blockage.Usually, the level of
  ischemic damage depends on the size of the artery
  involved and whether collateral circulation is
  present to help bypass the blocked artery.Often
  the arteries of the heart, abdomen, and pelvis
  are affected by atheromatous plaque.

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Complications associated with Atheroma

• Atheromas and the narrowing or complete blockage
  of arteries can lead to several
  complications.When the fibrous cap covering
  plaque tears down platelets that are involved in
  blood clot formation gets activated. When enough
  platelets reach the site of the plaque, blood
  clots form, causing ischemia and
  infarction.Moreover, if atheromatous plaque
  gets calcified, it makes the artery brittle,
  rigid, and unresponsive to increases in blood
  pressure. This can result in a ruptured artery,
  leading to a hemorrhage or excessive bleeding.

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Complications associated with Atheroma
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• Another complication can occur due to weakened
  arterial walls that are caused by plaque which
  has developed between layers of blood vessel
  tissue.This may lead to an aneurysm, which is
  an enlargement of part of the artery, and there
  is a chance the artery could rupture.

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Symptoms

• Signs and symptoms of atheromas include
• Angina (chest pain)
• Breathlessness
• Heart attack
• Stroke
• Transient ischemic attack (TIA)
• Peripheral vascular disorder
• Vascular dementia
• Pain in the calf
• Abdominal pain
• Nausea

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