All >
Medicine >
Cholesterol - Relating to the abdomen, the belly, that part of the body that contains all of the structures between the chest and the pelvis. The abdomen is separated anatomically from the chest by the diaphragm, the powerful muscle spanning the body cavity below the lungs.
MedicineNet.com - Cite This Source - This Definition - Browse Related Terms: Abdominal aortic aneurysm, Aneurysm, Aortic, Aortic aneurysm, Brain, Carotid, Cerebral, Heart, Inflammation, Muscle
Also listed in
All >
Medicine >
Cholesterol - A ballooning or widening of the main artery (the aorta) as it courses down through the abdomen. At the point of the aneurysm, the aneurysm usually measures 3 cm or more in diameter. The aneurysm weakens the wall of the aorta and can end in the aorta rupturing with catastrophic consequences. As the diameter of the aorta increases, the chances of an abdominal aortic aneurysm rupturing rise. A measurement of 5 cm is often used to recommend surgery. Persons with AAA tend to be 60 or over. Men are 5 times more likely than women to have an AAA.
MedicineNet.com - Cite This Source - This Definition - Browse Related Terms: Abdominal, Aneurysm, Aortic, Aortic aneurysm, Brain, Carotid, Cerebral, Heart, Inflammation, Muscle
All >
Medicine >
Cholesterol - Of abrupt onset, in reference to a disease. Acute often also connotes an illness that is of short duration, rapidly progressive, and in need of urgent care.
MedicineNet.com - Cite This Source - This Definition - Browse Related Terms: Acute coronary syndromes, Atherosclerosis, Coronary arteries, Coronary artery disease, Early heart disease, Heart attack, Heart disease, Infarction, Myocardial infarction, Palpitations, Stroke
Also listed in
All >
Medicine >
Cholesterol - A spectrum of conditions involving chest discomfort or other symptoms caused by lack of oxygen to the heart muscle (the myocardium). The unification of these manifestations of coronary artery disease under a single term reflects the understanding that these are caused by a similar pathophysiology (sequence of pathologic events) characterized by erosion, fissuring, or rupture of a pre-existing plaque, leading to thrombosis (clotting) within the coronary arteries and impaired blood supply to the heart muscle.
MedicineNet.com - Cite This Source - This Definition - Browse Related Terms: Acute, Atherosclerosis, Coronary arteries, Coronary artery disease, Early heart disease, Heart attack, Heart disease, Infarction, Myocardial infarction, Palpitations, Stroke
All >
Medicine >
Cholesterol - A localized widening (dilatation) of an artery, vein, or the heart. At the area of an aneurysm , there is typically a bulge and the wall is weakened and may rupture. The word "aneurysm" comes from the Greek "aneurysma" meaning "a widening."
MedicineNet.com - Cite This Source - This Definition - Browse Related Terms: Abdominal, Abdominal aortic aneurysm, Aortic, Aortic aneurysm, Brain, Carotid, Cerebral, Heart, Inflammation, Muscle
All >
Medicine >
Cholesterol - Chest pain due to an inadequate supply of oxygen to the heart muscle. The chest pain of angina is typically severe and crushing. There is a feeling just behind the breastbone (the sternum) of pressure and suffocation.
MedicineNet.com - Cite This Source - This Definition - chest pain or discomfort that occurs when your heart muscle does not get enough oxygen-enriched blood. It may feel like pressure or squeezing in your chest, or like indigestion. The pain may also occur in your shoulders, arms, neck, jaw, or back
Pfizer Inc. - Cite This Source - This Definition - Browse Related Terms: Fatigue, Headache, Heartburn, Nausea
Also listed in
All >
Medicine >
Cholesterol - Pertaining to the aorta, the largest artery in the body.
MedicineNet.com - Cite This Source - This Definition - Browse Related Terms: Abdominal, Abdominal aortic aneurysm, Aneurysm, Aortic aneurysm, Brain, Carotid, Cerebral, Heart, Inflammation, Muscle
All >
Medicine >
Cholesterol - An outpouching (a local widening) of the largest artery in the body, the aorta, involving that vessel in its course above the diaphragm (thoracic aortic aneurysm) or, more commonly, below the diaphragm (abdominal aortic aneurysm). The diagnosis of an aortic aneurysm can be straight forward or difficult. Around 1900 the eminent physician William Osler said: "There is no disease more conducive to clinical humility than aneurysm of the aorta." At the area of the aneurysm, there is typically a bulge and the wall is weakened and may rupture. Because of the volume of blood flowing under relatively high pressure through the aorta, a ruptured aneurysm of the aorta is a catastrophe.
MedicineNet.com - Cite This Source - This Definition - Browse Related Terms: Abdominal, Abdominal aortic aneurysm, Aneurysm, Aortic, Brain, Carotid, Cerebral, Heart, Inflammation, Muscle
All >
Medicine >
Cholesterol - A vessel that carries blood high in oxygen content away from the heart to the farthest reaches of the body. Since blood in arteries is usually full of oxygen, the hemoglobin in the red blood cells is oxygenated. The resultant form of hemoglobin (oxyhemoglobin) is what makes arterial blood look bright red.
MedicineNet.com - Cite This Source - This Definition - A vessel that carries blood high in oxygen content away from the heart to the farthest reaches of the body. Since blood in arteries is usually full of oxygen, the hemoglobin in the red blood cells is oxygenated. The resultant form of hemoglobin (oxyhemoglobin) is what makes arterial blood look bright red.
MedicineNet.com - Cite This Source - This Definition - Browse Related Terms: Aerobic, Aerobic exercise, Arteries, Blood vessel, Myoglobin, Organ, Vascular
Also listed in
All >
Medicine >
Cholesterol - A process of progressive thickening and hardening of the walls of medium-sized and large arteries as a result of fat deposits on their inner lining.
MedicineNet.com - Cite This Source - This Definition - Also known as "harding of the arteries", this is caused by the presence of excess cholesterol in the blood. The excess cholesterol accumulates on the lining of the blood vessels and forms a sticky, yellowish, thick plaque. This plaque can thicken to the point that it causes a blockage in the vessel, or part of it can break off and block another vessel in the body.
About.com - Cite This Source - This Definition - Browse Related Terms: Acute, Acute coronary syndromes, Coronary arteries, Coronary artery disease, Early heart disease, Heart attack, Heart disease, Infarction, Myocardial infarction, Palpitations, Stroke
Also listed in
All >
Medicine >
Cholesterol - A medication that lowers the level of cholesterol in the blood. Atorvastatin is a statin drug. All statins prevent the production of cholesterol in the liver by blocking the enzyme that makes cholesterol, HMGCoA reductase. They lower total blood cholesterol as well as low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol levels. Lowering LDL cholesterol levels retards progression and may even reverse coronary artery disease. Unlike the other statins, atorvastatin can also reduce the concentration of triglycerides in the blood. (High blood concentrations of triglycerides have been associated with coronary artery disease.) The brand name of atorvastin is Lipitor.
MedicineNet.com - Cite This Source - This Definition - A medication that lowers the level of cholesterol in the blood. Atorvastatin is a statin drug. All statins prevent the production of cholesterol in the liver by blocking the enzyme that makes cholesterol, HMGCoA reductase. They lower total blood cholesterol as well as low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol levels. Lowering LDL cholesterol levels retards progression and may even reverse coronary artery disease. Unlike the other statins, atorvastatin can also reduce the concentration of triglycerides in the blood. (High blood concentrations of triglycerides have been associated with coronary artery disease.) The brand name of atorvastin is Lipitor.
MedicineNet.com - Cite This Source - This Definition - Browse Related Terms: Cholesterol, Cholesterol Profile, Lipitor, Metabolic syndrome, Statin, Statin Drugs, Statins, Total cholesterol
Also listed in
[an error occurred while processing this directive]