Atherosclerosis Assignment 2022

Arthrosclerosis 1
ATHEROSCLEROSIS AND THE CARDIOVASCULAR SYSTEM
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Atherosclerosis is a condition where blood vessels carrying nutrients and oxygen to
other body parts from the heart build up with plaque, causing them to stiffen and thicken. The
plaque is composed of fats, cholesterol, calcium, and other substances being carried by the
blood. The accumulation of the plaque leads to narrowing of the arteries limiting the flow of
oxygenated blood around the body. The plaque creates bumps on the endothelium and as
atherosclerosis advances, the bumps increase in size and can eventually create blockages or
rapture of the plaque itself. Upon rapture of the plaque, clots begin to form in the blood
vessels which can completely block blood flow (Feinberg, 2016).
Symptoms of atherosclerosis develop slowly and are hardly visible or felt until an
artery is completely affected and can hardly supply enough blood to organs and tissues.
Symptoms also vary depending on which arteries have been affected. Chest pains and angina
suggest build up in heart arteries, plaque in the vessels leading to the brain causes slurred
speech, numbness in limbs and drooping facial muscles among others, build up in the arteries
in limbs causes claudication while build up in arteries leading to the kidney lead to high
blood pressure or kidney failure (Spanos, 2018).
Several changes occur in the cardiovascular system with an advance in age. The
arteries stiffen and thicken due to calcium deposits and loss of elasticity in the medial layer
causing a rise in systolic blood pressure and a decline in diastolic blood pressure. These
changes begin to take place at around 30-40 years leading to “unsuccessful” aging where risk
factors of developing cardiovascular diseases increase with increase in age. Factors such as
smoking, diabetes, high blood pressure and cholesterol at the age of 30-40 years map out the
cardiovascular health in males as their ages progress. (Hoskins, 2017).
Smoking leads to both immediate and long-term increase in blood pressure and heart
rate, reduces blood flow from the heart hence reducing amount of oxygen flow to body

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organs and increases risk for blood clots that doubles the risk of stroke. High cholesterol
levels in the bloodstream could lead to reduced blood flow to the heart and brain which could
lead to higher risks for heart attacks and strokes. Males suffering from diabetes have higher
risks for cardiovascular complications as the prevalence of diabetes rises with age. Men with
even somewhat higher than normal blood pressure are more likely to suffer from
cardiovascular diseases as they age. (Isgaard, 2015).
There are several effects of atherosclerosis most of which could lead to fatal attacks as
atherosclerosis impairs continuous and effective blood flow to major body organs leading to
less than optimum functions of these organs depending on which blood vessels are affected.
Since plaque build-up is a gradual process, symptoms develop slowly and do not show until
later stages of atherosclerosis Symptoms vary depending on affected arteries. When coronary
arteries are affected, it can cause ischemic heart disease also known as where the arteries do
not supply enough blood to the heart which could lead to a heart attack or unexpected cardiac
arrest (Ambrose, 2015). When the peripheral arteries become compromised, it leads to
peripheral artery disease where the arteries to the limbs narrow and stiffen causing pain, sores
or ulcers and intermittent claudication.
Carotid arteries supply blood to the brain. When plaque narrows these arteries or a
clot forms in one of these arteries, it causes carotid artery disease which can lead to a stroke.
Symptoms of carotid artery disease resemble those of a stroke which include paralysis,
confusion, trouble breathing and speaking, dizziness, loss of consciousness and sudden severe
headaches among others (Saam,2016). When renal arteries are affected, one develops chronic
kidney disease which slows down kidney function.

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REFERENCES
Feinberg, M.W. and Moore, K.J., 2016. MicroRNA regulation of atherosclerosis. Circulation
research, 118(4), pp.703-720.
Spanos, K., Petrocheilou, G., Livieratos, L., Labropoulos, N., Mikhailidis, D.P. and
Giannoukas, A.D., 2018. Carotid bifurcation geometry as assessed by ultrasound is associated
with early carotid atherosclerosis. Annals of vascular surgery, 51, pp.207-216.
Hoskins, P.R., Lawford, P.V. and Doyle, B.J. eds., 2017. Cardiovascular biomechanics.
Springer.
Isgaard, J., Arcopinto, M., Karason, K. and Cittadini, A., 2015. GH and the cardiovascular
system: an update on a topic at heart. Endocrine, 48(1), pp.25-35.
Ambrose, J.A. and Singh, M., 2015. Pathophysiology of coronary artery disease leading to
acute coronary syndromes. F1000prime reports, 7.
Saam, T., Habs, M., Buchholz, M., Schindler, A., Bayer-Karpinska, A., Cyran, C.C., Yuan,
C., Reiser, M. and Helck, A., 2016. Expansive arterial remodeling of the carotid arteries and
its effect on atherosclerotic plaque composition and vulnerability: an in-vivo black-blood 3T
CMR study in symptomatic stroke patients. Journal of Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance,
18(1), p.11.