Atherosclerotic Peripheral Vascular Disease Symposium II: Nomenclature for Vascular Diseases

Peripheral vascular diseases are important components of cardiovascular medicine. The high prevalence of these disorders in the clinical setting mandates effective communication among healthcare providers. The public health significance of these conditions requires clear and consistent terminology for community audiences. Therefore, the goal of this writing group was to suggest definitions, usage, and nomenclature of specific terms commonly used to describe vascular diseases by cardiovascular specialists and primary care communities. The need for clarity is driven by 2 major challenges: (1) the need for use of common keywords for literature searches; and (2) the need for healthcare professionals to use common, reasoned terminology when communicating with each other and with the public. The major structural components of the vascular system are the veins, lymphatic vessels, and arteries. These serve as the basis of the nomenclature system for vascular diseases (Figure). Figure. Major classification of vascular diseases. *Includes inflammatory, artery dysplasias, congenital, traumatic, and infections. In this report, the writing group focuses only on nomenclature that applies to non–coronary artery diseases. Venous and lymphatic diseases were outside the scope of this conference. Diseases of arteries are classified further into atherosclerotic occlusive disorders, nonatherosclerotic occlusive disorders, and aneurysms. …