Vascular System Disorders: Pathophysiology, Diagnostics, and Management

Vocabulary practice flashcards covering vascular disorders, including Aneurysms, Peripheral Artery Disease, Chronic Venous Insufficiency, Buerger's Disease, Raynaud's Disease, Deep Vein Thrombosis, and Varicose Veins.

Arteries

Blood vessels that transport blood away from the heart to tissues, usually carrying oxygenated blood with the exception of the pulmonary arteries.

Arterioles

Small arterial vessels that regulate blood flow and vascular resistance directly into capillary beds.

Capillaries

Microscopic blood vessels responsible for gas, nutrient, and waste exchange between blood and tissues through diffusion, filtration, and reabsorption driven by Starling forces.

veins

Blood vessels that return blood to the heart, typically carrying deoxygenated blood with the exception of the pulmonary veins.

Pulmonary Circulation

The circulatory pathway that carries deoxygenated blood from the heart to the lungs for oxygenation and returns oxygenated blood to the heart.

Systemic Circulation

The circulatory route that delivers oxygenated blood from the heart to the peripheral body tissues and returns deoxygenated blood back to the heart.

Coronary Circulation

The specialized circulatory route supplying oxygen and nutrients directly to the heart muscle (myocardium).

Aneurysm

An abnormal bulging or dilation of an artery caused by weakness in its wall, expanding under continuous arterial pressure with an increased risk of rupture and internal hemorrhage.

Thoracic Aortic Aneurysm (TAA)

An aneurysm occurring in the portion of the aorta situated within the chest cavity.

Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm (AAA)

An enlargement of the abdominal segment of the aorta, defined on ultrasound imaging by an aortic diameter of $\ge 3\,\text{cm}$.

Saccular Aneurysm

A sac-like arterial bulge projecting from one localized side of the vessel wall rather than involving its entire circumference.

Fusiform Aneurysm

A spindle-shaped arterial enlargement involving the entire circumference of the vessel wall, widening the section on all sides.

Dissecting Aneurysm

A vascular condition in which a tear develops in the inner arterial lining, allowing blood to separate the wall layers and creating a false lumen.

Pseudoaneurysm (False Aneurysm)

A condition where blood escapes through an injured arterial wall and collects in surrounding perivascular tissues, contained by external tissue rather than the three true arterial wall layers.

Endovascular Repair (EVAR)

A minimally invasive surgical intervention involving the placement of a stent graft inside the aorta to redirect blood flow away from the aneurysm sac.

Multilayer Flow Modulator

A specialized endovascular stent designed to modify blood flow inside an aneurysm sac while maintaining blood flow through vital branching arteries.

Open Surgical Repair (OSR)

A surgical procedure involving an abdominal incision to replace the diseased, weakened aortic segment with a synthetic graft.

Protamine Sulfate

The specific reversal agent and antidote administered to counteract the anticoagulant effects of heparin.

Vitamin K (Phytonadione)

The specific pharmacological antidote administered to reverse the anticoagulant effects of warfarin.

Peripheral Artery Disease (PAD)

A circulatory disorder characterized by arterial narrowing or occlusion (most commonly in lower extremities) typically caused by atherosclerotic plaque buildup.

Intermittent Claudication

A cramping pain, ache, or fatigue in the calf, thigh, or buttock muscles triggered by walking or exertion and relieved by rest, caused by muscle ischemia.

Dependent Rubor

A deep reddish-blue discoloration of the lower extremity occurring when the leg is in a dependent position, contrasting with elevation pallor in arterial disease.

Ankle-Brachial Index (ABI)

A diagnostic screening test comparing systolic blood pressure at the ankle to that at the arm, where a ratio of $0.90$ or lower confirms peripheral artery disease.

Cilostazol

A vasodilating medication indicated in peripheral artery disease to improve maximal walking distance and alleviate claudication pain.

Chronic Venous Insufficiency (CVI)

A peripheral venous condition where incompetent venous valves or venous outflow obstruction lead to impaired venous return, venous hypertension, and blood pooling.

Hemosiderin Deposition

A brown or rust-colored skin pigmentation around the lower legs and ankles resulting from red blood cell breakdown in chronically congested venous tissues.

Lipodermatosclerosis

A chronic complication of venous disease characterized by subcutaneous tissue inflammation, fibrosis, and induration that produces a hardened lower extremity.

Buerger's Disease (Thromboangiitis Obliterans)

A non-atherosclerotic, segmental inflammatory disease affecting small and medium-sized arteries and veins of the extremities, strongly tied to tobacco use in young adult males aged $20\text{--}45\,\text{years}$.

Dr. Leo Buerger

The American physician and pathologist who published the definitive 1908 description of the pathology and inflammatory vascular occlusion of thromboangiitis obliterans.

Corkscrew Collaterals

Tortuous, winding bypass blood vessels that form around segmental arterial occlusions in patients with Buerger's disease, identifiable on angiography.

Allen Test

A diagnostic assessment of radial and ulnar arterial patency and palmar collateral circulation, frequently showing abnormal results in Buerger's disease.

Sympathectomy

A minimally invasive surgical procedure that cuts or disrupts sympathetic nerve chains along the spine to reduce arterial spasm and relieve intractable ischemic pain.

Buerger-Allen Exercise

A therapeutic regimen of postural leg exercises (elevation, dependency, and horizontal resting) designed to improve peripheral collateral circulation.

Raynaud's Disease (Primary Raynaud's)

An idiopathic, symmetric vasospastic condition of digital arteries triggered by cold exposure or emotional stress, without an underlying systemic disease or structural arterial damage.

Secondary Raynaud's Phenomenon

An asymmetric, severe digital vasospastic condition caused by an underlying autoimmune or vascular pathology (such as scleroderma or lupus) that carries a high risk of digital ulceration and necrosis.

Nailfold Capillaroscopy

A noninvasive microvascular imaging technique that inspects capillary loops at the nailfold bed to detect structural abnormalities indicative of secondary Raynaud's phenomenon.

Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT)

The formation of a thrombus within a deep vein, most commonly in the lower extremities (calf, thigh, or pelvis), impairing venous outflow.

Virchow's Triad

The three classical factors contributing to intravascular thrombosis: venous stasis, endothelial vessel wall injury, and hypercoagulability.

Pulmonary Embolism (PE)

A life-threatening complication of deep vein thrombosis in which a dislodged venous clot travels through the right side of the heart and lodges in the pulmonary artery bed.

D-dimer Test

A laboratory blood assay measuring fibrin degradation products, where a normal or negative level is used to rule out active deep vein thrombosis.

Varicose Veins

Enlarged, dilated, and tortuous subcutaneous veins in the lower extremities resulting from vein wall weakness and incompetent one-way venous valves.

Trendelenburg Test

A clinical examination for assessing venous valve competence where the leg is elevated, a thigh tourniquet is applied, and the rapid filling of superficial veins upon standing indicates valvular incompetence.

Sclerotherapy

A targeted medical procedure where a chemical irritant (such as polidocanol) is injected into a varicose or spider vein to cause endosclerosis and vessel closure.

Endovenous Thermal Ablation

A minimally invasive intervention utilizing radiofrequency or laser heat energy delivered through a catheter to collapse and seal incompetent varicose veins.