Vascular disease

From Libre Pathology
Jump to navigation Jump to search

The article covers vascular disease, i.e. diseases of blood vessels. These keep vascular surgeons and cardiac surgeon busy.

Vasculitides are covered in a separate article called vasculitides.

Normal blood vessels

Comparing arteries and veins:[1]

Feature Artery Vein
Internal elastic lamina prominent/thick, usu. complete thin & incomplete
External elastic lamina present, thick absent
Shape circular / lumen wide open collapsed
Wall thickness thick thin

Great vessels

When things go wrong here, you see a cardiac surgeon.

Atherosclerosis

General

  • A leading cause of death, esp. in the Western world.
  • May have multi-system manifestations.

Location and associated pathology:

Clinical risk factors:

  • Age.
  • Blood pressure (high) - modifiable (antihypertensives).
  • Cholesterol - modifiable (statins, diet).
  • Diabetes mellitus - modifiable (hypoglycemic medications, diet, lifestyle).
  • Smoking - modifiable (cessation).
  • Family history.

Microscopic

Features:

  • Intimal hyperplasia.
  • Lipid deposition.
  • Foamy macrophages within intima & media.
  • Cholesterol clefts
  • Luminal narrowing.


Notes:

  • Considered "complex" if any of the following are present:[2]
    • Calcifications.
    • Thrombosis.
    • Haemorrhage.

Image

Stains

Aortic dissection

  • Abbreviated AoD.

General

Risk factors:

Note:

  • Diabetes uncommon in AoD.[4]

Associations

Heritable:[6]

Others:

Classification

Two classification exist:

  • DeBakey.
  • Stanford.

Stanford dissection classification:[10]

  • Type A - aortic root to the left subclavian artery.
    • Considered a surgical emergency.
  • Type B - distal to (left) subclavian artery.
    • Generally, treated conservatively.

Gross

  • Entry intimal tear +/- exit intimal tear.
    • Blood between layers of the vessel wall.

Images

www:

Microscopic

See: cystic medial degeneration.

Images

www:

Cystic medial degeneration

General

  • Nonspecific finding - may be seen in a number of conditions.

Note about cystic medial necrosis:

  • Often not cystic and not necrotic.

Microscopic

Features:[12][13]

  • Basophilic ground substance in the media (seen on Movat's stain).
  • Disruption of the elastic lamina (seen on elastic trichrome stain).
  • +/-Focal necrosis.

Images

www:

Stains

Medial calcific sclerosis

  • AKA Moenckeberg medial calcific sclerosis, calcific medial sclerosis of Monckeberg, and Monckeberg's arteriosclerosis.

General

  • Usually of no clinical consequence.

Microscopic

Features:[14]

  • Medial calcification (purple irregular stuff on H&E -- calcium phosphate).

Note:

  • Lumen unaffected.

Images

www:

Hyperplastic arteriolosclerosis

General

Note:

  • Hyperplasia = proliferation of cells.

Microscopic

Features:[14]

  • Onion-skin appearance of intima & media due to:
    • Intimal hyperplasia.
    • Smooth muscle hyperplasia.

Image: Hyperplastic arteriolosclerosis (utah.edu).

Fibromuscular dysplasia

  • Abbreviated FMD.

General

Etiology:

  • Unknown, possibly genetic.

Gender:

  • Women > men.
  • May be seen in virtually any artery.
  • Reported as a cause of sudden death with involvement of the artery supplying the AV node.[16]

Gross/radiologic

  • Segmental - thinning and thickening.[17]

Classical locations:[17]

Microscopic

Features:[17]

  • Smooth muscle hyperplasia - key feature.
  • Elastic fibre fragmentation.
  • Luminal narrowing.

Images:

Stains

Thromboangiitis obliterans

General

  • Strong association with smoking.[18]
  • Clinical-radiologic diagnosis.[19]

Typical symptoms/signs - progression:[20]

Treatment:

Gross

  • Afflicts small and medium-sized vessels of the extremities.
  • Corkscrew vessels - seen on angiography.[19]

Microscopic

Features:[21]

  • Acute inflammation:
    • Endarteritis - neutrophils at the internal elastic lamina (IEL).
    • Periarteritis - neutrophils around the arteries.
  • Obliteration of the lumen - intimal thickening.

Notes:

  • Typically segmental.[20]

DDx:

Sign out

MIDDLE FINGER DISTAL PHALYNX, LEFT, AMPUTATION:
- GANGRENE WITH ENDARTERITIS, PERIARTERITIS AND LUMINAL OBLITERATION/NARROWING 
  CONSISTENT WITH THROMOANGITIS OBLITERANS (BUERGER'S DISEASE).

Thrombosis

See also: Cerebral venous thrombosis.

General

Definition:

  • Blood clot formation within a vessel.

Complications:

Risk factors:

  • The classic pimping question is what "Virchow's triad?"
    • Stasis, hypercoagulability, endothelial injury.
  • A long list is found in: risk factors for VTE.

Gross

See: Pulmonary embolism - gross features.

Microscopic

Features:

  • Lines of Zahn.
  • Fibrin - pink acellular stuff on a H&E stain.

Image

Cholesterol embolism

  • Abbreviated CE.

General

  • Strong association with atherosclerosis - found in ~3% of individuals in an autopsy series of 267 older individuals (mean age ~65 years).[22]
  • Significant CEs are often iatrogenic.
    • Known complication of coronary catherization (incidence ~ 1%).[23]
    • May complicate any vascular surgery, CABG.

Microscopic

Features:[24]

  • Intravascular cholesterol clefts (biconvex white spaces) - key feature.
    • Typically ~ 100-500 micrometers (long axis) x 50-100 micrometers (short axis). (?)
  • +/-Macrophages and giant cells.
  • +/-Eosinophils.

Note:

  • May be associated with ischemic changes and necrosis.
  • Usually in the context of severe atherosclerosis.

Note (trivia):

  • Cholesterol crystals dissolve with routine processing (paraffin embedding); this is why one talks of "cholesterol clefts".

Images

Coarctation of the aorta

  • AKA aortic coarctation.

General

  • Uncommon.

Classification:

  • Preductal.
  • Postductal.

Associations:

Clinical

Presentation:[27]

  • Heart failure.
  • Hypertension - esp. upper extremity vs. lower extremity.

Gross

  • Narrowing (stenosis) of the aorta proximal or distal to the ductus arteriosis.

Image

Intracranial berry aneurysm

See also

References

  1. URL: http://www.lab.anhb.uwa.edu.au/mb140/corepages/vascular/vascular.htm. Accessed on: 13 January 2011.
  2. Klatt, Edward C. (2006). Robbins and Cotran Atlas of Pathology (1st ed.). Saunders. pp. 4. ISBN 978-1416002741.
  3. Braverman, AC. (Oct 2011). "Aortic dissection: prompt diagnosis and emergency treatment are critical.". Cleve Clin J Med 78 (10): 685-96. doi:10.3949/ccjm.78a.11053. PMID 21968475.
  4. 4.0 4.1 4.2 LeMaire, SA.; Russell, L. (Feb 2011). "Epidemiology of thoracic aortic dissection.". Nat Rev Cardiol 8 (2): 103-13. doi:10.1038/nrcardio.2010.187. PMID 21173794.
  5. Leontyev, S.; Borger, MA.; Legare, JF.; Merk, D.; Hahn, J.; Seeburger, J.; Lehmann, S.; Mohr, FW. (Mar 2012). "Iatrogenic type A aortic dissection during cardiac procedures: early and late outcome in 48 patients.". Eur J Cardiothorac Surg 41 (3): 641-6. doi:10.1093/ejcts/ezr070. PMID 22345184.
  6. Gleason TG (2005). "Heritable disorders predisposing to aortic dissection". Semin. Thorac. Cardiovasc. Surg. 17 (3): 274-81. doi:10.1053/j.semtcvs.2005.06.001. PMID 16253833.
  7. Loeys BL, Schwarze U, Holm T, et al (August 2006). "Aneurysm syndromes caused by mutations in the TGF-beta receptor". N. Engl. J. Med. 355 (8): 788-98. doi:10.1056/NEJMoa055695. PMID 16928994. http://content.nejm.org/cgi/content/full/355/8/788.
  8. Cruz, RP.; Marrone, LC.; Marrone, AC. (Nov 2010). "Chronic syphilitic aortic aneurysm complicated with chronic aortic dissection.". Am J Surg 200 (5): e64-6. doi:10.1016/j.amjsurg.2010.02.017. PMID 20864080.
  9. Carlson, M.; Silberbach, M. (2009). "Dissection of the aorta in Turner syndrome: two cases and review of 85 cases in the literature.". BMJ Case Rep 2009: bcr0620091998. doi:10.1136/bcr.06.2009.1998. PMID 21731587.
  10. Finkelmeier BA (September 1997). "Dissection of the aorta: a clinical update". J Vasc Nurs 15 (3): 88-93. PMID 9362838.
  11. URL: http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/756835-overview. Accessed on: 12 August 2010.
  12. URL: http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/756835-overview. Accessed on: 12 August 2010.
  13. Ha HI, Seo JB, Lee SH, et al. (2007). "Imaging of Marfan syndrome: multisystemic manifestations". Radiographics 27 (4): 989–1004. doi:10.1148/rg.274065171. PMID 17620463. http://radiographics.rsna.org/content/27/4/989.full.
  14. 14.0 14.1 Klatt, Edward C. (2006). Robbins and Cotran Atlas of Pathology (1st ed.). Saunders. pp. 7. ISBN 978-1416002741.
  15. URL: http://library.med.utah.edu/WebPath/IMMHTML/IMM028.html. Accessed on: 11 May 2011.
  16. 16.0 16.1 Lee, S.; Chae, J.; Cho, Y. (Dec 2006). "Causes of sudden death related to sexual activity: results of a medicolegal postmortem study from 2001 to 2005.". J Korean Med Sci 21 (6): 995-9. PMID 17179675.
  17. 17.0 17.1 17.2 Hata, D. (Sep 2001). "Fibromuscular dysplasia.". Intern Med 40 (9): 978-9. PMID 11579971.
  18. Highlander, P.; Southerland, CC.; VonHerbulis, E.; Gonzalez, A. (Jan 2011). "Buerger disease (thromboangiitis obliterans): a clinical diagnosis.". Adv Skin Wound Care 24 (1): 15-7. doi:10.1097/01.ASW.0000392923.37852.43. PMID 21173586.
  19. 19.0 19.1 Fujii, Y.; Soga, J.; Nakamura, S.; Hidaka, T.; Hata, T.; Idei, N.; Fujimura, N.; Nishioka, K. et al. (Aug 2010). "Classification of corkscrew collaterals in thromboangiitis obliterans (Buerger's disease): relationship between corkscrew type and prevalence of ischemic ulcers.". Circ J 74 (8): 1684-8. PMID 20534945.
  20. 20.0 20.1 20.2 Dargon, PT.; Landry, GJ. (Aug 2012). "Buerger's disease.". Ann Vasc Surg 26 (6): 871-80. doi:10.1016/j.avsg.2011.11.005. PMID 22284771.
  21. Kurata, A.; Schulz, A.; Franke, FE. (2004). "Reappraisal of thromboangiitis obliterans--a pathological contribution.". Verh Dtsch Ges Pathol 88: 231-6. PMID 16892557.
  22. Flory CM (1945). "Arterial occlusions produced by emboli from eroded aortic atheromatous plaques". Am J Pathol 21 (3): 549–565. PMC 1934118. PMID 19970827. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1934118/.
  23. Fukumoto Y, Tsutsui H, Tsuchihashi M, Masumoto A, Takeshita A (July 2003). "The incidence and risk factors of cholesterol embolization syndrome, a complication of cardiac catheterization: a prospective study". J. Am. Coll. Cardiol. 42 (2): 211–6. doi:10.1016/S0735-1097(03)00579-5. PMID 12875753. http://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S0735109703005795.
  24. Mills, Stacey E; Carter, Darryl; Greenson, Joel K; Reuter, Victor E; Stoler, Mark H (2009). Sternberg's Diagnostic Surgical Pathology (5th ed.). Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. pp. 1735-6. ISBN 978-0781779425.
  25. Braverman, AC.; Güven, H.; Beardslee, MA.; Makan, M.; Kates, AM.; Moon, MR. (Sep 2005). "The bicuspid aortic valve.". Curr Probl Cardiol 30 (9): 470-522. doi:10.1016/j.cpcardiol.2005.06.002. PMID 16129122.
  26. Hjerrild, BE.; Mortensen, KH.; Sørensen, KE.; Pedersen, EM.; Andersen, NH.; Lundorf, E.; Hansen, KW.; Hørlyck, A. et al. (2010). "Thoracic aortopathy in Turner syndrome and the influence of bicuspid aortic valves and blood pressure: a CMR study.". J Cardiovasc Magn Reson 12: 12. doi:10.1186/1532-429X-12-12. PMID 20222980.
  27. Peres, A.; Martins, JD.; Paramés, F.; Gil, R.; Matias, C.; Franco, J.; Freitas, I.; Trigo, C. et al. (Jan 2010). "Isolated aortic coarctation: experience in 100 consecutive patients.". Rev Port Cardiol 29 (1): 23-35. PMID 20391897.