1. Atherosclerosis in the circle of Willis: Spatial differences in composition and in distribution of plaques
- Author
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Eleonora Aronica, Nerissa P. Denswil, Onno J. de Boer, Katja Ritz, Mat J.A.P. Daemen, Dirk Troost, Allard C. van der Wal, Other departments, Pathology, and Amsterdam Neuroscience - Neurovascular Disorders
- Subjects
Tunica media ,Adult ,Male ,External elastic lamina ,Internal elastic lamina ,Vertebral artery ,Intracranial atherosclerosis ,Intraplaque haemorrhage ,Autopsy ,030204 cardiovascular system & hematology ,Calcification ,03 medical and health sciences ,0302 clinical medicine ,medicine.artery ,medicine ,Humans ,Aged ,Plaque shape ,Aged, 80 and over ,biology ,business.industry ,Anatomy ,Arteries ,Middle Aged ,medicine.disease ,Atherosclerosis ,Plaque, Atherosclerotic ,medicine.anatomical_structure ,biology.protein ,Circle of Willis ,Female ,business ,Tunica Media ,Cardiology and Cardiovascular Medicine ,Elastin ,030217 neurology & neurosurgery - Abstract
Background and aimsIntracranial atherosclerosis is one of the main causes of ischemic stroke. However, the characteristics of intracranial arteries and atherosclerosis have rarely been studied. Therefore, we systematically investigated atherosclerotic changes in all arteries of the Circle of Willis (CoW).MethodsSixty-seven CoWs obtained at autopsy from randomly chosen hospital patients (mean age, 67.3 ± 12.5 years), of which a total of 1220 segments were collected from 22 sites. Atherosclerotic plaques were classified according to the revised American Heart Association classification and were related to local vessel characteristics, such as the presence of an external and internal elastic lamina and the elastic fibre density of the media.Results181 out of the 1220 segments had advanced plaques (15%), which were mainly observed in large arteries such as the internal carotid, middle cerebral, basilar and vertebral artery. Only 11 out of 1220 segments (1%) showed complicated plaques (p
- Published
- 2016
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