
05/04/2024
Arteries carry blood rich in oxygen throughout your body. They go to your brain as well as to the tips of your toes. Healthy arteries have smooth inner walls and blood flows through them easily. Some people, however, develop clogged arteries. Clogged arteries result from a buildup of a substance called plaque on the inner walls of the arteries. Arterial plaque can reduce blood flow or, in some instances, block it altogether.
Clogged arteries could lead to a heart attack, stroke and even sudden death. The narrowing of coronary arteries decreases the blood flow to the heart, leading to chest pain (angina), shortness of breath, heart palpitations and weakness.
The hardening of the arteries may also lead to development of diseases such as coronary heart disease, microvascular artery disease, carotid artery disease, peripheral artery disease, and chronic kidney disease.Clogged arteries result from a build-up of plaque on the inner walls of the arteries.
Plaque is a waxy, sticky deposit made up of various substances that circulate in your blood including cholesterol, fat, calcium and fibrin (protein involved in blood clotting).In response to plaque buildup, cells in your artery walls multiply and secrete additional substances that can worsen the state of clogged arteries.
As the plaque builds up, the walls of the arteries thicken, lose their elasticity and become narrower, restricting the blood flow and reduces the oxygen your organs and other body parts receive. The plaque can burst, triggering a blood clot (thrombus) to form around the plaque. A clot may either further narrow the artery or completely block it levels of ''bad'' cholesterol, or low-density lipoprotein (LDL), are major contributors to arterial plaque formation. While ''good'' cholesterol, or