Atherosclerosis is a life-saving INFLAMMATORY RESPONSE to prevent you from bleeding to death!

What is atherosclerosis?

Atherosclerosis occurs as a result of the immune system's INFLAMMATORY RESPONSE to arterial wall damage.   Intended as a temporary fix, plaque is laid down to prevent bleeding through a damaged blood vessel wall.

Most cardiovascular disease (CVD) and peripheral artery disease (PAD) is a consequence of atherosclerosis (Greek: athero=paste, sclerosis=hardening).   The hardening and narrowing of the arteries with an accumulation of paste, called plaque, in the arterial wall.

Why be concerned about atherosclerosis?

If the actual cause of arterial wall damage is not addressed, arterial plaques can grow in size, eventually blocking the smaller arteries - such as the coronary arteries providing blood to the heart (causing a heart attack), or blocking /bursting the small arteries in the brain (causing strokes), or blocking peripheral arteries to the legs, feet or arms (causing pain and/or nerve/tissue damage), or setting the stage for several other undesirable possibilities:

•  Coronary Heart Disease (CHD) - atherosclerosis narrows the coronary arteries

•  Heart attack (myocardial infarction) - a blood clot develops from plaque, typically in one of the coronary arteries, causing a blockage, called a thrombosis), which blocks the oxygen supply to the heart

•  Arrhythmia - irregular heartbeat

•  Stroke - blockage of carotid artery supplying oxygenated blood to the brain

•  Angina - chest pain

•  Hypertension (high blood pressure) 

•  Thrombosis - clot formation attached to blood vessel wall in an artery or vein obstructing blood flow;

•  Hemorrhagic burst (blood vessel rupture).