Definition – What is a calcified carotid artery?
Our carotid arteries are often affected by calcification and narrowing with increasing age. There is a common carotid artery that runs from the chest towards the head and divides into an inner and an outer carotid artery in the area of the neck. The inner carotid artery, Arteria carotis interna, supplies the brain with blood.
Especially at the branching point of the common carotid artery, calcium deposits are very often found. A calcified carotid artery carries the risk of carrying a clot from the calcified vessel wall to the brain. A stroke can occur and is a dreaded consequence of a calcified carotid artery.
Causes of calcified carotid artery
The carotid artery calcifies in the course of arteriosclerosis. The term arteriosclerosis describes a narrowing of the blood vessels due to deposits. Risk factors such as old age, high blood pressure and elevated blood lipid levels damage the blood vessels over time. This leads to the formation of plaques (deposits) on the vessel walls. These deposits are colloquially known as calcification, so that one speaks of calcified blood vessels.
How are calcified carotid arteries diagnosed?
To diagnose calcification of the carotid arteries, an ultrasound examination is necessary. With the ultrasound device one can quickly and easily examine the neck vessels and assess the blood flow in the vessels. An ultrasound examination of the cervical vessels is one of the preventive examinations for strokes.
The ultrasound device allows an examination of the vessel walls down to a tenth of a millimeter. The intima media thickness is measured, i.e. certain layers of the vessel wall of the aorta. If the ultrasound reveals a thickened section of the wall, this is a sign of arteriosclerosis.
In addition to wall thickness, modern ultrasound equipment can make plaques visible. Even tiny deposits on the vessel walls can be detected. Furthermore, a narrowing of the vessels (stenosis), caused by deposits and changes in the vessel walls, leads to a change in the blood flow. Ultrasound devices have techniques that visualize the blood flow.
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