You can learn a lot about someone if you know their family members. That’s why we’re looking at Tuberculosis in this episode. 1.8 billion of the world’s population has been infected by TB. Most of them have latent infection. 10.6 million had active infection in 2021...
We’ll discuss the general process of vascular calcification and some common risk factors for this. How do smooth muscle cells in the blood vessel wall contribute to the process? And what about macrophages? How do statins affect calcification? What about CAC-scores? What would happen...
Learn about the role of macrophages in atherosclerosis. Where do they really come from? How do they contribute to the plaque? How are they driving the immune reaction? What’s the relation between macrophages and T cells? We’ll also look at vascular inflammation in the form of...
Sometimes, when things fall apart, it just might be a sign that they are falling into place. That’s one of my favourite sayings. I’ve found it to be true in my life and in the lives of my patients. Jean knew something was wrong. He was tired all the time and couldn’t go full out in the...
Continuing on my discussion from episode 48, I lay out the real significance of the Vasa Vasorum. What is it about the vasa vasorum that plays into Atherosclerosis as an autoimmune disease? What’s the real difference between the vasa vasorum of veins vs arteries?
I’ve been asked so many times about which end of the blood vessel allows entry of LDL particles that I’ve decided to address the question in this episode. One of the reasons there is so much confusion around discussion of the vasa vasorum is that we only focus on 1 tiny aspect...
This episode is based on a request by a listener to address Dr. Malcolm Kendrick’s hypothesis on the clot as the underlying initiator of atherosclerosis which he proposed in his book, The Clot Thickens. Based on his observations, Dr. Kendrick talks about atherosclerosis as a blood...
Cholesterol is often considered the troublemaker in atherosclerosis. The medical world vilifies it and with some medications, aims to drive it to the brink of extinction in your body! Although not the inciting event in atherosclerosis, it does have an important role in the disease process...
There’s a method to my madness, for sure! If you’ve been wondering about my “eclectic” choice of topics for previous episodes, I’m hoping you’ll realize that I was making my way towards this deep dive all along! From lipoproteins to the immune system to...
LDL-cholesterol–usually cast as the villain in the disease process of atherosclerosis. But is cholesterol the main problem? Why does your doctor want to lower the level of LDL as much as possible? Then there are others who say that high LDL levels are not the problem, it’s...
