Drug to help get rid of artery plaques?

My understanding of plaque is that they are the scars that form within the tissue that protects the inner linings of the heart's blood vessels. The scarring occurs as a result of cholesterol and fats being embedded in that area, leading it to bulge.

I think when people think of plaque, they get a picture of yellowing teeth, in the sense that plaque can be removed as easily as it could when it is scrapped off teeth. But clearly that is not what's happening inside one's blood vessels.

I thought it was cholesterol combined with some calcium type substance that crystalizes it along the linings of arteries and restrictions the arteries' flexibility?

Post Merge: 4 months ago

I do know they can surgically scrap away plaques, but that is in extreme cases and isn't without possible complications.

Correct, and it's prone to damage by free-radicals in the blood. But just as you cannot remove a scar on the surface of your skin, for example, neither can you with plaque in your blood vessels.

What do you mean? They literally remove plaque in the arteries with surgical tools.

I never knew the plaque could be physically removed. I just watched a 7-minute animation on it, and was astonished. I always thought the only way around plaque would be either to reduce its formation by adjusting ones diet, performing by-pass surgery, or by using a stent. I'm curious if there's an association between strokes and those who've undergone an atherectomy, since I'd imagine some of the plaque material may shed into the bloodstream, creating a clog in the brain.

Not sure. My cousin suggested scar tissue might form from high BP and it might be the scar tissue that the plaque can stick to. But I am actively looking for research on substances that might break scar tissue down. Or maybe a natural process enhanced to house keep better.

Absolutely, which is why high BP is very damaging. But also thickened arteries leads to high BP too, leading to a viscous positive feedback cycle that's difficult to escape in atherosclerosis.

I don't think scars can heal once you've appeared. According to this study, the author makes a connection between proliferative scars (e.g. superficial scars formed from injury) to those found in the blood vessels of people with atherosclerosis. Since we cannot heal superficial scars (at least not to my knowledge), how would it be possible to do so deep within the surface of the heart?