Atherosclerosis Occurs when the vessels of the heart thicken and harden as a result of accumulation of lipid-laden macrophages within the arterial wall which forms plague lesions (McCane & Huether, 2006) It is the leading contributor to coronary artery and cerebrovascular disease (McCane & Huether, 2006) Atherosclerosis is a form of arteriosclerosis, and is an inflammatory condition caused by the accumulation of lipid-laden macrophages in the arterial walls (McCane & Huether, 2006) Atherosclerosis is a progressive disease process that can be described as follows: Low density lipoproteins (the bad cholesterol) enter the vessel and are oxidized into proinflammatory lipids.
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