Understand and prevent
Plaque, lipids and overall risk: build a coherent prevention plan.
The interface is available in English. Medical content currently remains in French; English medical editions will be added after scientific review.
Loading…
LEARN AND EXPLORE
Athérosclérose & pathologies artérielles
Choose an area to find its topics and related resources.
Repères, parcours et ressources complémentaires
Explore atherosclerosis, arterial diseases and associated investigations.
Subsections
What to work on
- Organiser les sujets par territoire artériel.
- Retrouver les ressources de prévention.
- Relier les cours aux explorations vasculaires.
All topics in this section
Related investigations
LEARNING PATHWAYS
From prevention to vascular emergencies
7 topics · 38 added course sections · 4 teaching diagrams
Assess a limb
Distinguish claudication, chronic limb-threatening ischaemia and acute emergencies.
Carotids and aorta
Connect symptoms, measurements and the timing of care.
Expandable course chapters, practical tables and references linked to the relevant sections.
Clinical approach and commented situation
MICA · CLINICAL LEARNING
A cross-cutting clinical approach
Arterial disease requires assessment of both perfusion and symptoms in the affected territory and overall cardiovascular risk. Distinguish acute ischaemic emergencies, chronic symptomatic disease and asymptomatic findings.
01 · Identify the territory and time course
Clarify pain, exertional limitation, neurological symptoms, wounds and sudden limb change. Sudden pain with coldness, sensory loss or motor deficit requires an urgent vascular pathway. Acute chest or back pain suggesting aortic disease and focal neurological deficit also need immediate appropriate assessment. Risk factors do not justify dismissing these findings as established chronic disease.
[1][2]02 · Confirm without unnecessary testing
Connect examination, pulses and haemodynamic measurements to the hypothesis. For lower limbs, the ankle–brachial index is useful but requires interpretation in context, including limitations with noncompressible arteries. Duplex ultrasound and further imaging should answer a specific question, particularly when intervention is considered. The Carotid disease course does not replace assessment of the aorta or lower-limb arterial disease.
[3][2][1]03 · Address the cardiovascular context
Assess smoking, dyslipidaemia, hypertension, diabetes, kidney disease and disease in other vascular territories. Management combines smoking-cessation support, appropriate activity, foot protection and individual indication-based medication. Antithrombotic strategies depend on the clinical syndrome, bleeding risk and any revascularisation; they are not interchangeable. Global prevention remains necessary after a technically successful procedure.
[2][1][3]04 · Monitor symptoms, tissues and function
Document walking capacity, rest pain, wound progression and functional impact. Adapt rehabilitation and vascular referral to these findings rather than relying only on imaging or a laboratory value. After intervention, organise territorial and medication follow-up. Rapid symptom change or threatened tissue viability requires reassessment even after a reassuring recent review.
[2][1][3]A learning situation
FICTIONAL SITUATION · WITHOUT A SCORE
Fictional situation: a person with known claudication suddenly develops a cold, painful foot with reduced movement. Their follow-up appointment is due soon.
Is scheduled follow-up sufficient?
Read the reasoning
No. This change may indicate acute limb-threatening ischaemia. Arrange immediate emergency assessment and vascular input rather than waiting for the appointment or outpatient testing. Specify onset time, deficits and current medicines. Known arterial disease strengthens the need to assess this new syndrome.
References and scope
- ESC · Maladies artérielles périphériques et aortiques, 2024 · texte intégral déposé par les auteurs · DOI 10.1093/eurheartj/ehae179 ↗
- 2024 ACC/AHA Multisociety Guideline for the Management of Lower Extremity Peripheral Artery Disease ↗
- Peripheral arterial disease: diagnosis and management — CG147 recommendations ↗
Original educational synthesis for adult internal medicine. Individual care depends on the clinical setting, applicable product information and local pathways. These notes are not an institutional protocol or a certification. Independent human scientific review remains to be confirmed.