arteriosclerosis
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GC: n

S: CDC – https://goo.gl/34bEWk (last access: 25 October 2017); GHR – https://goo.gl/pK91yU (last access: 25 October 2017).

N: 1.From Latin arterio- + sclerosis, “hardening of the arteries” 1885, medical Latin.
We can find this term related to the prefix Wer- in etymology.

  • Wer-(1): proto-Indo-European root meaning “to raise, lift, hold suspended”.
  • Wer-(2): proto-Indo-European root forming words meaning “to turn, bend.”

2. Also called hardening of the arteries is chronic disease characterized by abnormal thickening and hardening of the walls of arteries, with a resulting loss of elasticity. Arteries carry oxygenated blood full of nutrients from the heart to organs throughout the body. The arterial wall is made up of three distinct layers, an outer layer of tissue (adventitia), a muscular middle layer (media), and an inner layer of epithelial cells (intima); the latter is the one most commonly affected by arteriosclerosis.

3. There are three recognized types of arteriosclerosis:

  • atherosclerosis: the most common type, in which plaques of fatty deposits form in the inner layer (tunica intima) of the arteries.
  • arteriolosclerosis or arteriolar sclerosis: which is marked by thickening of the walls of arterioles.
  • Monckeberg medical calcific sclerosis: called also medial calcific sclerosis because of involvement of the middle layer (tunica media) of the arteries, where there is destruction of muscle and elastic fibers and formation of calcium deposits.

All three forms may be present in the same patient, but in different blood vessels.

4. Atherosclerosis is a specific type of arteriosclerosis, but the terms are sometimes used interchangeably.

5. Cultural Interrelation: We can mention John Adams (1735-1826), the second president of the United States, who died of arteriosclerosis.

S: 1. OED – https://goo.gl/HoRSpM (last access: 25 October 2017). 2 & 3. EncBrit – https://goo.gl/hs3Vwr (last access: 25 October 2017); MEDICALDICT – https://goo.gl/cVrW1Z (last access: 25 October 2017). 4. MAYO – https://goo.gl/LHxf2T (last access: 25 October 2017). 5. https://www.ranker.com/list/famous-people-who-died-of-arteriosclerosis/reference (last access: 27 October 2017).

SYN: arterial sclerosis

S: MAYO – https://goo.gl/LHxf2T (last access: 25 October 2017).

CR: arteritis, artery, multiple sclerosis, Takayasu arteritis.