Atherosclerosis Viewed from the Inside

The clinical illness of coronary artery disease is the end-stage of silent long established arterial disease or the rapid consecutive events following injury to the vessel wall. The most common form of degenerative arterial disease is atherosclerosis, which is a complex process determined by endothelial cell injury, migration, thrombosis and monocytes infiltration. These factors are related to the two main mechanisms of smooth muscle cell proliferation and lipid infiltration. Warning signs are present and timely action can reduce the risk both of a first attack and a recurrence. Cardiovascular medicine has improved the understanding of the clinical responsibility. This has involved a change in role perception and then a new technology, which is still evolving. Physicians are learning to move beyond the stage of treating the single risk factor which is readily accessible and measurable such as raised blood pressure to the concept of multiple interventions such as the implementation of systemic or local drug treatment and biomedical device delivery. There is still much scope for clinical scientists and practitioners to treat cardiovascular disease. Proper guidance by newly developed diagnostic methods and strategies will improve the therapeutic prospects of coronary artery disease.