16 topics with concise breakdowns: definitions, key facts, and class questions.
This section focuses on typical pathological processes associated with disorders of the blood and lymphatic circulation. These form the basis of most fatal complications in clinical practice, from myocardial infarction to thromboembolism.
Here we break down the entire chain of vascular catastrophes. The section covers topics dedicated to alterations in blood volume (arterial hyperemia, systemic and localized venous congestion, blood stasis), vascular permeability disorders (hemorrhages and bleedings), as well as lymphatic disorders. A separate block covers obstructive processes: thrombosis with its types and outcomes, embolism, ischemia, and infarction. Severe systemic reactions—shock and DIC syndrome—complete the picture.
What is most frequently asked in class? Instructors love to grill students on the morphology of chronic venous congestion ("nutmeg liver", "brown induration of the lungs"). Make sure to learn the types and macro-microscopic appearance of thrombi, their outcomes, and the morphology of infarcts in various organs. DIC syndrome and shock are favorite topics for testing clinical thinking, so their pathogenesis and morphology must be understood rather than simply memorized.
What is the difference between working and reflex hyperemia?
Functional (working) hyperemia occurs during increased organ activity to supply it with oxygen. Reflex hyperemia is the nervous system's response to emotions (anger, shame) or physicochemical factors (heat, cold, radiation).
Why do tissues become cold during venous congestion?
Due to oxygen deficiency, oxidative processes decrease, the inflow of warm arterial blood diminishes, and dilated superficial veins act as a radiator, increasing heat dissipation.
What are "heart failure cells"?
These are macrophages (hemosiderophages) laden with hemosiderin pigment. They are detected in the sputum of patients with brown induration of the lungs.
How does obstructive venous hyperemia differ from compression hyperemia?
Obstructive hyperemia is associated with the occlusion of the venous lumen from within (by a thrombus or embolus), whereas compression hyperemia is caused by external compression of the vessel (by a tourniquet, tumor, or scar).
How does a hematoma differ from hemorrhagic imbibition?
In a hematoma, tissue is destroyed and a pathological cavity filled with blood is formed. In hemorrhagic imbibition, the tissue structure is preserved; it is merely infiltrated by erythrocytes.
What is the difference between mechanical and dynamic insufficiency?
Mechanical insufficiency is caused by a physical obstacle to lymph flow, whereas dynamic insufficiency is caused by a mismatch between the excessive volume of tissue fluid and the rate of its drainage.
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