Changes in blood flow can greatly affect how vascular diseases, or diseases of the blood vessels, progress. Here are a few ways this happens:
Shear Stress Changes: When blood flow is disrupted, it creates an unusual type of stress on the blood vessel walls, called shear stress. This can harm the lining of the blood vessels. Research shows that when shear stress is low, more plaque builds up in the arteries.
High Blood Pressure: High blood pressure, or hypertension, affects about 1 billion people around the world. When someone has high blood pressure for a long time, it can hurt the blood vessels and change their shape, which can lead to more vascular problems.
Inflammation: Blood flow changes can trigger inflammation. A study from 2009 found that when blood flow is disturbed, it increases certain chemicals that promote inflammation, making blood vessel injury worse.
Remodeling: When blood flow stays abnormal for a long time, it can cause the arteries to grow thicker. For example, people with high blood pressure often have walls of their arteries that are 20% thicker than normal.
These factors work together and help accelerate the progression of vascular diseases, especially conditions like atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries) and aneurysms (swelling in the artery wall).
Changes in blood flow can greatly affect how vascular diseases, or diseases of the blood vessels, progress. Here are a few ways this happens:
Shear Stress Changes: When blood flow is disrupted, it creates an unusual type of stress on the blood vessel walls, called shear stress. This can harm the lining of the blood vessels. Research shows that when shear stress is low, more plaque builds up in the arteries.
High Blood Pressure: High blood pressure, or hypertension, affects about 1 billion people around the world. When someone has high blood pressure for a long time, it can hurt the blood vessels and change their shape, which can lead to more vascular problems.
Inflammation: Blood flow changes can trigger inflammation. A study from 2009 found that when blood flow is disturbed, it increases certain chemicals that promote inflammation, making blood vessel injury worse.
Remodeling: When blood flow stays abnormal for a long time, it can cause the arteries to grow thicker. For example, people with high blood pressure often have walls of their arteries that are 20% thicker than normal.
These factors work together and help accelerate the progression of vascular diseases, especially conditions like atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries) and aneurysms (swelling in the artery wall).