Infarction
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
In medicine, an infarction is when an artery is blocked by some obstruction (e.g. a blood clot or cholesterol deposit), causing cell necrosis. Infarctions are most closely associated with atherosclerosis. When an atherosclerotic plaque ruptures, a thrombus forms on the surface, occluding the blood flow and occasionally forming an embolus that occludes other blood vessels downstream.
Infarctions are arbitrarily divided into two types according the amount of hemorrhaging present:
- White (anemic) infarctions affect solid organs such as the heart, spleen, and kidneys. The occlusion is most often composed of platelets, and the organ becomes white, or pale.
- Red (hemorrhagic) infarctions, generally affecting the lungs. The occlusion consistes more of red blood cells and fibrin strands.
Diseases commonly associated with infarctions include:
- Myocardial infarction (heart attack)
- Cerebrovascular accident (stroke – 80% are due to infarction)
- Peripheral arterial occlusive disease (the most severe form of which is gangrene)
- Antiphospholipid syndrome
- Sepsis
- Giant-cell arteritis (GCA)de:Infarkt
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