Chronic infections and atherosclerosis

Acta Microbiol Immunol Hung. 2001;48(3-4):497-510. doi: 10.1556/AMicr.48.2001.3-4.16.

Abstract

The inability of traditional risk factors such as hypercholesterolemia, hypertension, and smoking to explain the incidence of atherosclerosis (AT) in about 50% of the cases prompted a search for additional putative risk factors involved in the development of the disease. Infectious agents have long been suspected to initiate/contribute to the process of AT. It has also been suggested that inflammation, either related to infectious agents or independent from infection, may mediate the atherogenic process [1, 2].

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Arteriosclerosis / etiology*
  • Arteriosclerosis / microbiology
  • Arteriosclerosis / virology
  • Chlamydophila Infections / complications
  • Chlamydophila pneumoniae / pathogenicity
  • Chronic Disease
  • Cytomegalovirus / pathogenicity
  • Cytomegalovirus Infections / complications
  • Disease Models, Animal
  • Herpes Simplex / complications
  • Humans
  • Infections / complications*
  • Inflammation / complications
  • Risk Factors
  • Seroepidemiologic Studies
  • Simplexvirus / pathogenicity