Types of atherosclerosis-related diseases
The aorta is the largest artery in your body. Shaped like a candy cane, it leaves the heart traveling toward your head, arches down and runs the length of your torso.
Atherosclerosis usually occurs in the abdominal section of the aorta and is a common cause of abdominal aortic aneurysms. An aneurysm is a bulging or ballooning of the blood vessel that can be deadly if it ruptures.
This is atherosclerosis of the arteries in and leading to your brain. Carotid artery disease is a narrowing of the carotid arteries in your neck that carry blood to your head.
Atherosclerosis can also affect the arteries that bring blood to your internal organs and extremities. Common diseases associated with atherosclerosis in these arteries include:
- Coronary artery disease (CAD) - atherosclerosis in the arteries that deliver blood to your heart muscle.
- Peripheral artery disease (PAD) - narrowing of the arteries in the legs, arms or pelvis.
- Renal artery disease - narrowing of the arteries that lead to the kidneys.