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1. Cardiovascular Disease

2. Atherosclerosis
• Atherosclerosis means ‘hardening of the arteries’.
• Caused by a build up of yellow fatty deposits called
‘plaques’.
• A plaque can build up until it restricts or even blocks
the blood flow through an artery.
• Plaques can form anywhere but are particularly
likely in coronary and carotid arteries.
• Several factors including high blood pressure and
chemicals in cigarettes can lead to atherosclerosis.

3. • Atherosclerosis begins with damage to the endothelial lining of an artery.
• This causes an inflammatory response in the body and white blood cells
arrive at the site.
The cells gather chemicals from
the blood, including cholesterol
which causes a fatty deposit
known as an atheroma to
develop.

4. • Fibrous tissue also builds up around the atheroma
making the plaque harden.
• This causes the artery wall to harden so that it is less
elastic.
• This is atherosclerosis.

5. Problems caused by atherosclerosis
The artery lumen becomes very small which causes a increases
in blood pressure.
This can increase the risk of atherosclerosis occurring
elsewhere in the body.
• Aneurysm: Blood can build up behind a blockage causing the
artery wall to bulge and weaken. This increases the chances
of the wall splitting and internal bleeding occurring.
Aneurysms are often fatal.
• High Blood Pressure: Can cause damage in other organs such
as kidneys, eyes and the brain.

6. Heart Disease
• The two most common forms are
angina and Myocardial Infarction
(heart attack), but there are
many others.
• These two are closely linked to
atherosclerosis.
Angina
• Plaques can build up in the
coronary arteries and reduce
blood flow to areas of the heart
muscle.
• When a person exercises, the
artery can deliver enough blood
to the muscle so it respires
anaerobically
• This causes pain in the chest, jaw
and arms , and makes people feel
breathless.

7. Myocardial Infarction
• Heart attacks can be caused by blood clots caused by atherosclerosis.
• The walls around a plaque are stiffened making them prone to cracks.
• Platelets detect this damage and trigger the clotting mechanism.
• The clot can then block the whole blood vessel, if this occurs in a coronary artery
it causes a heart attack.
• The heart muscle is starved of oxygen and nutrients.
Symptoms
• Severe chest pain occurring any time.
• Pain can spread into jaw and arms
• Pain can be sudden or last for several
hours.

8. Strokes
• Caused by an interruption to the blood supply in the brain.
• May be a bleed from a damaged vessel, or a blockage
cutting off the blood supply.
• Blockages in main vessels can cause serious strokes, in
smaller arterioles the effects are less severe.
• Symptoms:
• Dizziness, confusion, blurred or lost vision, slurred speech
and numbness.
• Severe strokes can cause paralysis down one side of the
body and death.

9. Factors that increase the risk of Cardiovascular Disease
• Inheritance: Some people are genetically predisposed
to some diseases.
• Diet: A diet high in saturated fat, salt and alcohol
increases the risk.
• Age: Those most at risk are over the age of 40.
• Gender: Men are more likely to suffer than women.
• High Blood Pressure (see later)
• Smoking: Chemicals in tobacco smoke can increase the
risk.
• Physical Inactivity: Exercise can help decrease the risk.

10. The Role of high blood pressure in CVD
• High blood pressure is known as hypertension.
• There are many causes of hypertension, including:
stress, smoking, a high fat diet and lack of exercise.
• Hypertension increases the amount of wear and tear
that occurs in your arteries because they have to
work harder.
• The amount of friction between the wall of the artery
and the blood cells is increased and damage is more
likely to occur on the artery wall.
• This then leads to plaque formation to repair the
damage.