Who Does Vasculopathy Affect?

Some people are born with vascular diseases they inherit from their parents. In these cases, such as blood clotting disorders, they start dealing with this issue at a younger age. However, many vascular diseases develop over time because of an accumulation of plaque (fat and cholesterol) in the arteries, such as peripheral artery disease or carotid artery disease. Atherosclerosis, the hardening of the arteries, can start when you’re a teen and cause problems in middle age or later.

What Causes Vascular Disease?

For some vascular problems, the cause isn’t known. Vascular disease causes include:

• High cholesterol.
• High blood pressure.
• Smoking or using tobacco products.
• Diabetes.
• Genes you get from your parents.
• Medicines.
• Injury.
• Infection.
• Blood clots.

How Is Vascular Disease Diagnosed?

Your healthcare provider will want to do a physical exam and get your medical history, as well as a history of which diseases are in your family. It helps your healthcare provider look for vascular disease when you take your shoes and socks off before they examine you.

Depending on the type of vascular disease your provider suspects, they may do blood tests and imaging.

What Tests Will Be Done to Diagnose Vasculopathy?

Many vascular diseases involve clots or blockages in blood vessels. To diagnose these, your healthcare provider needs to be able to see inside your blood vessels using imaging methods that include:

• Vascular ultrasound.
• Catheter angiography.
• CT angiography.
• MR angiography.

How Is Vascular Disease Treated?

Eating healthier and exercising more can help with many vascular diseases. For others, you may need to take medicine or have a surgical procedure. Vascular disease treatments vary depending on the condition.

Peripheral artery disease treatment

• Peripheral artery disease: Diet, exercise, medicine, surgery.
• Intestinal ischemic syndrome: Pain medicine, clot-busting drugs, surgical removal of blood clot. Angioplasty, stenting or bypass surgery for chronic cases.
• Renal artery disease: Low-salt, heart-healthy diet. High blood pressure medicine, statins.
• Popliteal entrapment syndrome: Surgery to release the popliteal artery.
• Raynaud’s phenomenon: Keep hands and feet warm. Take medicine that helps blood vessels stay open (dilated).
• Buerger’s disease: Quit tobacco products. Warm up fingers and toes. Take medicine (vasodilators) to open blood vessels.

Treatment of carotid artery issues

• Carotid artery disease: Healthier diet. Blood thinners and cholesterol-lowering medicine. Plaque removal (carotid endarterectomy). Angioplasty and stenting to keep the artery open.
• Carotid artery dissection: Antiplatelets, anticoagulants, stenting.
• Carotid body tumors: Surgical removal of the tumor.
• Carotid artery aneurysm: Antihypertensives, cholesterol-lowering medicine, clot-busting medicine. Bypass or stent-graft surgery.

Venous disease treatment

• Varicose veins and spider veins: Removal using heat, saltwater or laser therapy.
• Klippel-Trenaunay syndrome (KTS): Same treatment as varicose veins.
• May-Thurner syndrome (MTS): Same as for deep vein thrombosis.
• Thoracic outlet syndrome (TOS): Physical therapy, medicine.
• Chronic venous insufficiency (CVI): Move legs frequently and wear compression stockings. Vein treatment with saltwater, laser or removal through an incision.

Blood clot treatment

• Blood clotting disorders: Same as for deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism.
• Deep vein thrombosis (DVT): Elevate your legs. Take blood thinners and medicines for pain.
• Pulmonary embolism: Blood thinners and thrombolytics. Procedure to remove the clot.
• Axillo-subclavian vein thrombosis: Thrombolytics, blood thinners. Removal of the clot.
• Superficial thrombophlebitis: Raise your affected limb above your heart. Use a warm compress. Put on support stockings. Have the vein surgically removed.

Aortic aneurysm treatment

• Thoracic aortic aneurysm: Surgery to put in a fabric graft or a stent. This can be a major surgery depending on the location and surgical method.
• Abdominal aortic aneurysm: Surgery to put in a graft. An endovascular repair is less invasive.

Fibromuscular Dysplasia (FMD)

• Blood thinners, medicine for pain.
• Angioplasty. Surgery to prevent an artery rupture.

Lymphedema

• Let your arm rest above your heart level while you lie down for 45 minutes twice daily.
• Wear a compression sleeve.
• Use your affected limb for daily tasks.
• Visit a specialized lymphedema clinic if your healthcare provider recommends it.

Vasculitis

• Your provider may prescribe medications like steroids.