Embolism

In medicine, an embolism occurs when an object (the embolus, plural emboli) migrates from one part of the body (through circulation) and cause(s) a blockage (occlusion) of a blood vessel in another part of the body.

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This can be contrasted with a "thrombus" which is the formation of a clot within a blood vessel, rather than being carried from elsewhere.

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Blood clots form the most common embolic material by far: other possible embolic materials include fat globules, air bubbles (an air embolism), septic emboli (containing pus and bacteria), or amniotic fluid.

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Emboli often have more serious consequences when they occur in the so-called "end-circulation": areas of the body that have no redundant blood supply, such as the brain, heart, and lungs.

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Assuming a normal circulation, a thrombus or other embolus formed in a systemic vein will always impact in the lungs, after passing through the right side of the heart. This forms a pulmonary embolism that can be a complication of deep-vein thrombosis.

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In the rare cases where there is a congenital hole in the heart (or some other abnormality of the circulation), it is possible that an embolus from a systemic vein can cross into the arterial system and land anywhere in the body.

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Emboli starting in the heart (from a thrombus in the left atrium secondary to atrial fibrillation or septic emboli from endocarditis) can cause emboli in any part of the body.

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An embolus landing in the brain from either the heart or a carotid artery will likely cause a stroke.

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Medicine: Medicine is a branch of health science concerned with maintaining human health and restoring it by treating disease and injury; it is both an area of knowledge, a science of body systems and diseases and their treatment, and the applied practice of that knowledge....

Body: With regard to living things, a body is the integral physical material of an individual, and contrasts with soul, personality and behavior....

Circulation: The word circulation can mean the following:...