Vascular Disease

The vascular system — your body's network of arteries, veins, and tiny capillaries — is responsible for delivering oxygen and nutrients everywhere and carrying waste products away. Vascular disease disrupts this system. The most common form is atherosclerosis, in which plaque builds up inside artery walls over time, narrowing them and making them stiffer. This can reduce blood flow to the heart, brain, legs, kidneys, and other organs.

Peripheral artery disease (PAD) affects the arteries in the legs and feet and can cause cramping, pain with walking, and slow-healing wounds. Carotid artery disease narrows the arteries supplying the brain and is a major risk factor for stroke. Aortic aneurysm involves dangerous bulging of the body's largest artery. Venous conditions like deep vein thrombosis (DVT) and chronic venous insufficiency affect how blood returns to the heart.

Many risk factors for vascular disease are shared with heart disease and stroke: high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes, smoking, obesity, and physical inactivity. Women also have additional considerations — pregnancy complications, certain hormonal therapies, and autoimmune conditions can affect vascular health in ways that are sometimes underrecognized.

Vascular disease is often silent until it causes a serious event — a heart attack, stroke, or sudden loss of circulation in a limb. That is why identifying risk factors and managing them proactively matters so much. Imaging tests and blood vessel health assessments can detect narrowing or damage before a crisis occurs.

If you have risk factors like high blood pressure, high cholesterol, or diabetes, understanding how these affect your blood vessels gives you a clearer picture of why managing them is worthwhile. Vascular health underpins the health of nearly every organ in your body.