The complications resulting from atherosclerosis can arise slowly over time as blood flow is reduced. The lack of blood flow to the heart and other organs is called ischaemia. You will have heard of ischaemic heart disease.
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This ischaemia causes pain, either as chest pain as in angina, or as claudication - pain in the calves and buttocks.
This occurs as the arteries become stiffer and further blocked by plaque. The arteries cannot respond to demand and cannot adjust to blood pressure changes. The resultant ischaemic pain is called angina.
Acute complications, especially rupture and thrombosis, can cause a heart attack. These are most likely to occur in highly lipid-enriched plaques with thin fibrous caps.
The common ways in which the heart is affected are through:
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