What’s Carotid Artery Disease?

What’s Carotid Artery Disease?
The carotid arteries are the key blood vessels that supply oxygenated blood to a brain. Each artery is located on one side of the neck, so whenever a physician places a hand on the neck for pulse detection, they feel one of the arteries.

If you or your loved one is suffering from carotid artery disease, then it means either or all of the arteries aren’t supplying enough blood to the brain due to a blockage. Usually, the brain requires a constant supply of oxygen from the blood, so if the supply is paused, the brain cells start dying within some minutes. If the arteries are narrowed severely and the blood cannot flow, it will lead to a stroke.

What’s the Cause of Carotid Artery Disease?

This disease is usually caused by atherosclerosis, a condition where plaque builds up in arteries. The same build-up occurs in the blood vessels of the heart when one has coronary artery disease. The plaque contains bundles of proteins, fat, cellular waste, cholesterol, or calcium. These compounds normally make the arteries less flexible and narrower over time, limiting the blood flow into the organs.

What are the carotid artery disease risk factors?

Currently, numerous conditions can cause damages to your arteries, increasing the carotid artery disease risk. This includes:

• Diabetes – affects the ability of the body to process blood sugar. This increases atherosclerosis and high blood pressure risk.
• High blood pressure – weakens the artery walls and increases the probability of damaging them.
• Obesity – increases the risk of conditions like atherosclerosis, diabetes, and high blood pressure.
• High cholesterol – increases the atherosclerosis risk factor.
• Physical inactivity – leads to diabetes, obesity, and high blood pressure.
• Smoking – irritates the artery lining and increases the blood pressure and heart rate.
• Old age –makes the arteries stiffer hence increasing their susceptibility to damage.
• Family History – if your family members have had atherosclerosis, your risks of getting the disease increase too.

Remember, these factors don’t cause the disease but only increase the risk of getting it.

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