Infection, Infectious Agents and Vascular Disease.

Ielapi, Nicola; Caprino, Francesco; Malizia, Biagio; Sisinni, Antonio; Ssempijja, Lwanga Ssempijja; Andreucci, Michele; Licastro, Noemi; Serra, Raffaele

BACKGROUND Infectious agents may be involved in the pathogenesis of vascular disease and related complications. The aim of this review is to analyze the most relevant information on the common infections related to vascular disease, discussing the main pathophysiological mechanisms. METHODS In the current review, the most important evidences on the issue of infections and vascular disease were searched on Medline, Scopus, and ScienceDirect database. RESULTS Among infectious agents, herpesviruses, parvovirus B19, hepatitis viruses, human immunodeficiency virus, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2, treponema pallidum, mycobacterium tuberculosis, pseudomonas aeruginosa, staphylococcus aureus, and candida albicans seem to particularly related to vascular disease. CONCLUSION Infectious agents may affect vessel's homeostasis and functionality, both on the arterial and venous side, by means of several pathophysiological mechanisms such as dysregulation in vasomotor function, thromboembolic complications, initiation and progression of atherosclerosis, alteration of perivascular adipose tissue, recruiting inflammatory cells and molecules.