Cholesterol And Heart Disease
Atherosclerosis Is A Risk Factor for Heart Attacks
The most common heart disease is often caused by cholesterol buildup in the arteries, but there are several other factors involved.
High cholesterol is a risk factor for heart disease. Having high cholesterol levels, particularly those of LDL type, can cause blood vessel damage and lead to heart disease when other factors are present. These factors include smoking, obesity, family predisposition and genetics including homocystinuria, hypertension, and diabetes. Cholesterol is made by the liver as well as being part of a healthy dietary intake of fats. Excess cholesterol is deposited in the blood vessels and increases as a person ages.
What Is Heart Disease
There are many conditions that fall under the umbrella of heart disease. The most common heart disease is coronary artery disease, also called coronary heart disease, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC). Coronary artery disease occurs when the supply of blood to the outer layer of the heart is inhibited or when those vessels are damaged. Blockage of the coronary arteries prevents oxygen and nutrients from reaching the outer portion of the heart and the resulting damage is referred to as a heart attack.
Cholesterol’s Contribution to Heart Attacks
Cholesterol deposited in the arteries forms plaques. These plaques often develop over decades and are a common and normal occurrence in aging blood vessels. The hardening of the arteries and their obstruction, including that leading to a heart attack, is called atherosclerosis.Plaque development begins in youth and is enhanced by environmental or genetic factors as a person ages - the livers of some patients produce too much cholesterol, hypertension increases the stress put on the plaques and vessels, and obesity and diet increase fatty acids that perpetuate plaque buildup, to name a few.
The atherosclerotic plaques become a danger when they obstruct blood flow, rupture, or wear away the arterial wall. The event can go unnoticed or result in a severe complication such as a heart attack, stroke, or hemorrhage. Plaques can also cause arterial walls to become worn and tear, leading to aneurysms. Clinical manifestations or complications of atherosclerosis are usually not seen until middle age. The clinical phase is more common in men, but begins to appear as frequently in women after menopause.
Other Contributory Factors for Atherosclerosis
Smoking is known to contribute to the development of atherosclerotic plaques by increasing the foam cells that fill them and push the plaques outward to cut off blood flow through the artery. Also, smoking may present one of the initiating events for cholesterol adherence within the artery. According to a popular medical school Pathology text (Kumar et al, Basic Pathology, 7th edition), immune responses are partly responsible as well since atherosclerosis is a chronic inflammatory response to damage along the inner arterial wall, propagated by cholesterol buildup. An improperly treated virus or an unneeded pharmaceutical may be as much to blame for heart disease as cholesterol.
