Mechanisms in thrombosis.

A key factor in atherosclerosis, spasm and thrombosis is damage to the endothelium. Prevention of injury to the endothelium will reduce the extent of atherosclerosis, reduce the risk of spasm and prevent thrombosis. Future work in this field will obviously be centered primarily on the endothelium, mechanisms of injury and strategies for prevention of endothelial cell injury. At present, it is not known how useful drugs will be for the long term management of atherosclerosis and its complications. It may be that the more important approach in the future will be to modify risk factors such as smoking and diet since these might injure the endothelium.