Atherosclerosis - the most widespread chronic disease of arteries elastic (an aorta, its branches) and muscular elastic (arteries of heart, a brain, etc.) Type, with formation of the single and plural centers lipide, mainly cholesteric adjournment - atherosclerotic plaques - in an internal environment of arteries. The subsequent growths in it connecting tissues (sclerosis) and a calcification of a wall of a vessel lead to slowly progressing deformation and narrowing of its lumen down to a full devastation (obliteration) of an artery and by that cause a chronic, slowly accrueing failure of blood supply of the organ fed through the amazed artery. Besides the acute occlusion (occlusion) of a lumen of an artery or a thrombus, or (much less often) contents of the broken plaque, or both that and another simultaneously is possible, that conducts to formation of the centers of a necrosis (infarct) or gangrenes in an organ fed by an artery (a part of a body). The atherosclerosis meets the greatest frequency at men in the age of 50-60 and at women 60 years are more senior.

The pathogenesis is combined and not quite deciphered. Value of so-called risk factors of development of an atherosclerosis is doubtless. Some of them cannot be eliminated: age (the atherosclerosis develops at patients in the age of 40-50 years is more often and is more senior), an accessory to a male, the period of a postmenopause at women, heavy on an atherosclerosis a family heredity. Others to some extent can be eliminated: a hypodynamia, an arterial hypertensia, an alimentary obesity, smoking, a diabetes mellitis. The major role in development of an atherosclerosis is played with disturbances of a lipide exchange.

Signs, current. The clinical picture varies depending on primary localization and prevalence of process, but always (except for an atherosclerosis of an aorta) is defined by displays and consequences of an ischemia of a tissue or an organ, depending as from a degree of narrowing of a lumen of the main arteries, so from development of collaterals.