What is the difference between arteriosclerosis and atherosclerosis?
Arteriosclerosis and atherosclerosis are sometimes used to mean the same thing, but there's a difference between the two terms.
What is arteriosclerosis?
Arteriosclerosis occurs when the blood vessels that carry oxygen and nutrients from your heart to the rest of your body (arteries) become thick and stiff.
What is atherosclerosis?
Atherosclerosis is a specific type of arteriosclerosis.
Atherosclerosis is the buildup of fats, cholesterol and other substances in and on your artery walls. This buildup is called plaque. The plaque can cause your arteries to narrow, blocking blood flow. The plaque can also burst, leading to a blood clot.
Symptoms
Mild atherosclerosis usually doesn't have any symptoms.
Symptoms of moderate to severe atherosclerosis depend on which arteries are affected. For example:
If you have atherosclerosis in your heart arteries, you may have symptoms, such as chest pain or pressure (angina).
If you have atherosclerosis in the arteries leading to your brain, you may have signs and symptoms such as sudden numbness or weakness in your arms or legs, difficulty speaking or slurred speech, temporary loss of vision in one eye, or drooping muscles in your face.
If you have atherosclerosis in the arteries in your arms and legs, you may have signs or symptoms of peripheral artery disease, such as leg pain when walking (claudication) or decreased blood pressure in an affected limb.
If you have atherosclerosis in the arteries leading to your kidneys, you develop high blood pressure or kidney failure.
Causes
Atherosclerosis is a slow, progressive disease that may begin as early as childhood.
Although the exact cause is unknown, atherosclerosis may start with damage or injury to the inner layer of an artery.
The damage may be caused by:
- High blood pressure
- High cholesterol
- High triglycerides
- Smoking
- Insulin resistance, obesity or diabetes
- Arthritis, lupus, psoriasis or inflammatory bowel disease
The same healthy lifestyle changes recommended to treat atherosclerosis also help prevent it.
These include:
- Quitting smoking
- Eating healthy foods
- Exercising regularly
- Maintaining a healthy weight
- Checking and maintaining a healthy blood pressure
- Checking and maintaining healthy cholesterol and blood sugar levels
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