Plaques can be removed from your artery by a process known as atherectomy. There various techniques for this like rotational atherectomy using a rotablator, directional coronary atherectomy and laser atherectomy. Simple balloon angioplasty also removes the plaques, though it plasters the plaque on to the artery wall by enlarging it a bit, so that final lumen is better than the initial lumen.
Category Archives: Diseases Of Blood Vessels
What is Takayasu arteritis?
Takayasu arteritis is a disease involving mainly the large blood vessels, usually the aorta and its major branches. It has various other names like aortoarteritis, young female arteritis, pulseless disease etc. Young female arteritis because it occurs commonly in young females. Pulseless disease because upper limb blood vessels are often occluded and the pulses are not easily felt. It can also involve the heart sometimes. High blood pressure can be associated, though it may be difficult to document because upper limb blood vessels are blocked.
Can repeated blood pressure measurements be harmful?
Usually there is no harm with repeated blood pressure measurements. But it could cause discomfort due to repeated inflation of the blood pressure cuff over the arm. In rare situations where there is an artificial arteriovenous fistula (AV fistula) created in the fore arm to facilitate hemodialysis (one form of dialysis), repeated blood pressure measurements on the arm could reduce the flow through the AV fistula and cause it to get occluded. Hence it is advised that those individuals should not have their blood pressure checked on the arm with the AV fistula.
How does ezetemibe, a cholesterol lowering drug work?
Ezetemibe a cholesterol lowering medication lowers blood cholesterol by inhibiting its intestinal absorption by acting on Niemann-Pick C1Like1 (NPC1L1) receptor in the intestinal brush border. Niemann-Pick C1Like1 (NPC1L1) is the phytosterol and cholesterol transporter in the intestinal brush border. Ezetimibe causes a decrease in LDL-Cholesterol by inhibiting this transporter. A combination of ezetimibe with atorvastatin is quite powerful in bringing down cholesterol.
How are arterial emboli removed?
The blood vessel is opened and a Fogarty’s catheter (a small tube with a balloon at its tip) is inserted. The balloon end is pushed past the emboli and the balloon inflated. The whole assembly is pulled out, bringing with it, the emboli. This procedure is known as embolectomy. The procedure can be done under local anaesthesia and is a limb saving procedure if done within appropriate time, usually within six hours of onset. Sometimes small fragments may still migrate beyond and block smaller vessels, causing ischemia.