| Are Vascular Aging and Atherosclerosis Synonymous? |
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Hyung Joon Yoo |
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Department of Internal Medicine, Hangang Sacred Heart Hospital, Hallym University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea. hjoonyoo@gmail.com |
| 혈관노화 ? 죽상경화와 동의어인가? |
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유형준 |
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한림대학교 의과대학 내과학교실 |
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| Abstract |
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The development of plaques along the inner layer of arterial walls is known as atherosclerosis. Atherosclerotic plaques can become hardened by calcium deposition and fibrous tissue of the arterial wall may proliferate leading to arteriosclerosis. In a typical textbook, arteriosclerosis only has three categories-atherosclerosis, Monckeberg medial calcific sclerosis, and arteriolosclerosis, leaving out vascular aging when in fact, aging is the strongest risk factor for atherosclerosis. Thus, vascular aging is often confused with atherosclerosis. Up to now, there has been no appropriate pathological term for vascular aging. And arteriosclerosis is different from vascular aging, as atherosclerosis includes some components of pathologic aging. But in actuality, physiological aging and pathological aging can not be clearly distinguished. Therefore, in terms of aging, arteriosclerosis is included in vascular aging. More research is required to define vascular aging. |
| Key Words:
Vascular aging, Atherosclerosis, Aging |
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