Introduction The veins are complex “organs,” and much like arteries, are well suited to their physiologic purpose. Venous diseases represent a major concern in the general population and are influenced by genetics, environment, and acquired conditions. Understanding the basic physiologic…
Introduction: The Physics of Arterial Flow Haemo : from ancient Greek α α ἱμο -(haimo-). Pertaining to blood. Dynamics : the branch of mechanics concerned with the motion of bodies under the action of forces. It differs from “kinematics”, which…
Peripheral arterial disease (PAD) of the limbs can progress to critical limb ischemia (CLI), characterized by rest pain and tissue loss, including nonhealing ulceration and gangrene. , The body compensates via neovascularization, either the formation of collateral circulation to bypass…
Ischemia-reperfusion injury (IRI) is the biological equivalent of a well-executed 1-2 punch in boxing. It is best prevented in the first place; the less impactful the first punch, the better. Since the second punch builds on damage of the first…
Intimal hyperplasia represents the healing response to vascular injury as well as the adaptive response to developmental or physiologic events. Injury induces a progressive structural change within the blood vessel lumen that begins with the disruption of endothelial barrier function…
Vascular surgeons care for a diverse set of clinical manifestations related to atherosclerosis, from transient cerebral ischemic attacks, strokes, aortoiliac occlusions, aortic aneurysms, mesenteric ischemia, to lower extremity arterial occlusive disease. However, despite the wide range of manifestations, culprit lesions…
Complex organisms rely on the fluid, nutrient, and waste transport capabilities of the cardiovascular system, whose subdivisions each have unique structure and biology to perform crucial metabolic and mechanical functions. The arterial network reacts to hemodynamic forces through constriction or…
The fundamental purpose of the vascular system is to supply the organism with oxygen and nutrients, and to remove metabolic waste products. During the first three weeks of gestation, simple diffusion is sufficient to support the embryo; however, by the…
The goal of this chapter is to introduce to the vascular surgeon principles that underlie the design, conduct, and interpretation of epidemiology and clinical research. Disease-specific outcomes otherwise detailed in subsequent chapters are not covered here. Rather, this chapter discusses…
Introduction For the purposes of this chapter, vascular trauma is considered in the following anatomic distributions, each of which has differing diagnostic and management considerations: (1) cervical or carotid, (2) axillo-subclavian, (3) thoracic, (4) abdominal, and (5) extremity domains. Whereas…