№ 26Cardiology16 min read
Atherosclerosis (risk factors, pathomechanism, organ complications, prevention and treatment)
1. Big picture
Atherosclerosis is a chronic inflammatory disease of medium and large arteries. It starts silently in the arterial wall, but clinically appears as myocardial infarction, stroke, peripheral arterial disease, aortic aneurysm, renal artery stenosis, mesenteric ischemia, or sudden death.
The examiner wants you to connect:
Risk factors → endothelial dysfunction → LDL entry/oxidation → inflammation → plaque → stenosis or rupture → organ ischemia/infarction
The most important modifiable risk factors are LDL cholesterol, smoking, hypertension, diabetes, obesity, sedentary lifestyle, and diet.
Unlock the rest of this topic
Subscribe to Internal Medicine for $10/month and unlock all 229 topics — full exam-structured notes, the State Exam questions integrated into every topic, and the downloadable Anki deck. Cancel anytime.
- ✓All 229 Internal Medicine topics, exam-structured
- ✓State Exam questions in every topic
- ✓Downloadable Anki deck (.apkg)
- ✓Cancel anytime
Already subscribed? Sign in