#cholesterol

• Cholesterol-lowering — Combating, reducing, or regulating blood cholesterol levels; a medication (such as statins), dietary supplement, or functional food structurally designed to lower low-density lipoproteins (LDL) and prevent cardiovascular risks associated with atherosclerosis.
• Atheroma — A pathological plaque or deposit composed of lipid substances (especially cholesterol), foam cells, cellular debris, and fibrous tissue that gradually accumulates within the intima tunic of large and medium arteries. Its development leads to the narrowing of the vascular lumen, reduction of arterial elasticity, and disruption of blood flow, representing the fundamental lesion of atherosclerosis.
• Atherosclerotic — Pertaining to atherosclerosis, referring to this condition, or caused by the formation of atheromatous plaques and the stiffening of the arterial wall; as a noun, it denotes a person suffering from this cardiovascular disease. In clinical diagnosis, the term qualifies a degenerative process, an occlusive lesion, or a structural modification of large vessels driven by cholesterol deposition.
• Atherosclerosis — A chronic and progressive cardiovascular disease characterized by the deposition of lipid substances (cholesterol) and calcium salts within the inner tunic of large and medium arteries, associated with connective tissue proliferation and vascular wall stiffening. This process gradually leads to the narrowing of the arterial lumen, reduced blood supply to organs, and represents the primary cause of myocardial infarction and stroke.