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Glossary
C
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Circulatory system |
The heart and blood vessels responsible for the circulation of blood throughout the body. The circulatory system provides tissues with oxygen and nutrients and removes waste products. |
| Circumflex |
One of the three major coronary arteries. |
| Claudication |
Cramping, aching, numbness, tiredness, weakness, or burning in your buttock, thigh, calf or foot that occurs when walking and goes away when you rest. Because the pain can come and go, it is often called intermittent claudication. A symptom of PAD. |
| claustrophobia |
fear of confined spaces that can make it difficult for some women to enter a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) machine for tests, including an MR angiogram; a CT scanner is more open and may be an option for these women |
| Clinical Trial |
A scientific study that compares and analyzes medical treatments. |
| Clopidogrel |
an antiplatelet medication that keeps the blood from sticking together and forming clots; sold under the brand name Plavix |
| Clot busters |
Medications that dissolve blood clots. During a heart attack, clot busters dissolve the blood clot that is blocking the artery and help restore blood flow to the heart. Also called thrombolytic agents. |
| Clot remover |
a miniature tool attached to the end of a catheter, used to break up or remove a blood clot that is blocking a blood vessel; may be used in the brain to treat stroke |
| coarctation of the aorta |
a type of inborn heart defect in which the main artery leading out of the heart is narrowed, making the heart work harder to pump out blood; can lead to heart failure |
| Cognitive behavior therapy |
A form of therapy using imagery, self-instruction, and related techniques. |
| Collateral blood vessels |
Tiny blood vessels that may spontaneously enlarge and become functional in people with coronary artery disease. They help to detour blood flow around plaque deposits in arteries. |
| Collateral circulation |
An increase in alternative blood circulation from various blood vessels to increase oxygen flow to the heart. Collaterals usually develop after a vital coronary vessel has been blocked. |
| Complete blood count (CBC) |
a routine test that measures the health of your blood; it includes the number of red blood cells, white blood cells, platelets, and other factors |
| compression stockings |
prescription stockings that help blood flow back to the heart in women with chronic vein disease or deep vein thrombosis |
| compression ultrasound |
a type of ultrasound test used to diagnose deep vein thrombosis; during the ultrasound test (which uses sound waves to create images of the veins), the technologist puts pressure on the veins to close them off and see how blood flow responds |
