Atherosclerosis treatment
Treatment of atherosclerosis
The treatment of arteriosclerosis (vascular calcification) depends on the triggering cause of the arteriosclerosis.
Occlusions of the coronary arteries can be treated by the cardiac catheter examination, which is also used for diagnostics. Usually in the same session, a small balloon can be inserted into the narrowed area via the diagnostic catheter, which expands the narrow area.
In many cases, however, this only provides relief of the symptoms of arteriosclerosis over a short period of time and the vessels often narrow and close again after a while. For this reason, a so-called stent can also be inserted into the narrowed vessel. This is a mesh-like tube that is supposed to keep the narrowed area open. Stents of the newer generation are sometimes also treated with a radioactive substance that should also try to keep the vessel open.What used to be the standard method for opening blocked coronary arteries is now only performed in severe cases: bypass surgery (treatment of arteriosclerosis).
If there is a circulatory disorder in the brain due to increasingly occluding cervical vessels, attempts can also be made to make the vessels passable again with expansion maneuvers. In the vast majority of cases, however, a narrowing or closure of the smallest vessels in the brain area leads to the dizziness described above. In this case, blood circulation-enhancing and blood-thinning drugs can also be used in the treatment of arteriosclerosis.
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- The diet in atherosclerosis
Peripheral arterial disease (PAOD) can be performed after diagnosis with percutaneous transluminal angioplasty (PTA) be treated. Similar to the heart, a catheter probe is guided through the corresponding vessel to the narrowed point. Then the narrowed area can be widened with an inflatable balloon. Newer instruments have a laser probe at the tip of the catheter, which can then remove the thrombotic material from the vessel walls.
By dissolving the occluded area with medication, attempts can be made during the procedure to increase the success rate in the treatment of arteriosclerosis. Even after weeks of closure, the blood vessels can be reopened with drugs, also known as thrombolytics. Medicines include Tissue plasminogen activator (r-tPA), Streptokinase or Urokinase. If the peripheral outflow path is preserved in closed vessels, which is the case with approx. 20% of the vessel occlusions, a operational procedure be useful. These procedures include the Thrombendarterectomy, which is mainly used for short-distance occlusions of the leg arteries. The closed vessel is opened by means of a Ring strippers reopened. This procedure can also be combined with vasodilation. A Bypass surgery, in which a vessel is removed from another part of the body and guided around the closed vessel as a diversion, is used for very heavy vessel occlusions. The vessel most commonly used for this bypass circuit is the Great saphenous vein (Treatment of atherosclerosis)
Plastic vessels can now also be used for treatment in order to restore the bypass cycle. If there is an acute occlusion of arteries, especially in the leg, an immediate reopening of the vessel is necessary to prevent the leg amputated must become. With all therapies it should be noted that after treatment, the patient's lifestyle must be adjusted according to the situation. It is important to ensure that high blood cholesterol levels are lowered with medication in order to prevent the blood vessels from narrowing again soon. Here comes the drug group of the Statins and the Fibrates for use. The blood must also be made thinner during the treatment. This can be done with ASS, or Marcumar can be achieved.
