What is Atherosclerosis?

There are two terms that make sense to know about when discussing diseases of the arteries. These are “arteriosclerosis” and “atherosclerosis”—both similar diseases. Arteriosclerosis happens when the arterial walls become too thick and don’t stretch during systole.

Common words for arteriosclerosis are “hardening of the arteries”. On the other hand, atherosclerosis happens when fatty deposits, calcium and cholesterol build up inside the wall of the artery. In fact, atherosclerosis is the most common cause of arteriosclerosis.

The deposits of atherosclerosis can cause one of several things to happen. The artery can become narrowed, causing a lack of blood flow to distal areas. There can be an aneurysm, which is an out-pouching of the arterial wall that stands the risk of rupturing and bleeding complications. There is a type of arteriosclerosis that is the result of excess calcium buildup in the arteries causing damage to the middle layer of the artery. A related condition is called arteriolosclerosis, which is damage to the tiny arterioles in the body.

The end result of arteriosclerosis and atherosclerosis is loss of blood to important organs. The problem can lead to kidney failure, stroke, or heart attack. It is a major cause of illness and death in the US. Those at high risk of getting atherosclerosis include those with high LDL cholesterol levels (bad cholesterol), those with high blood pressure, those who are diabetic, smoke, are obese, or have a family history of atherosclerosis. Physical inactivity may predispose people to getting atherosclerosis and those of advancing age will have a higher risk.

At younger ages, men are at higher risk of getting atherosclerosis but, at older ages, women catch up and have a higher risk of getting atherosclerosis as well. It is a condition with no symptoms until an event occurs, such as angina (heart pain), stroke-like symptoms or kidney failure. Doctors can sometimes diagnose narrowing of the arteries by checking a pulse pressure or the difference between the top number of the blood pressure (systolic pressure) and the bottom number of the blood pressure (diastolic pressure). If this difference is great there may well be atherosclerosis or arteriosclerosis going on. Lesser symptoms of narrowed arteries include impotence from poor blood flow to the penis and partial blindness from narrowed arteries in the eye.

To decrease the chance of getting atherosclerosis, one should have a blood pressure and blood cholesterol checked and should eat a low fat diet while exercising moderately on a regular basis. As stress can contribute to atherosclerosis, you should consider reducing stress as a way of lowering your chances of getting atherosclerosis.