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atheroma

American  
[ath-uh-roh-muh] / ˌæθ əˈroʊ mə /

noun

Pathology.
  • atheromas,
    plural
  • atheromata
    plural
  1. a sebaceous cyst.

  2. a mass of yellowish fatty and cellular material that forms in and beneath the inner lining of the arterial walls.


atheroma British  
/ ˌæθəˈrəʊmə, -ˈrəʊ- /

noun

  1. pathol a fatty deposit on or within the inner lining of an artery, often causing an obstruction to the blood flow

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

Inflected Forms

Nouns

Etymology

Origin of atheroma

1700–10; < New Latin, Latin: a tumor filled with gruellike matter < Greek athḗrōma, equivalent to athḗr ( ē ) gruel + -ōma -oma

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

Dr Edward Sheffield, who performed an additional post-mortem examination on Kitchen's body in Bristol, said his cause of death had been cardiac failure due to coronary artery atheroma and the physiological effects of turbulence.

From BBC ● Sep. 23, 2026

Except for the remote danger of clot formation on the uneven or eroded spot, these places are of no special significance, and are not to be confused with the atheroma of nodular sclerosis.

From Arteriosclerosis and Hypertension: with Chapters on Blood Pressure, 3rd Edition. by Louis Marshall Warfield

Such dilatations are usually due to chronic endarteritis and atheroma.

From Special Report on Diseases of the Horse by Charles B. Michener

There were a few flecks of atheroma in the aorta.

From The Journal of Abnormal Psychology, Volume 10 by Various

It is not applicable to cases in which there is such a degree of atheroma as would interfere with the successful ligation of the artery.

From Manual of Surgery Volume First: General Surgery. Sixth Edition. by Alexis Thomson

Then a week later he removed the atheromas that were causing the sharp pain in Key's legs.

From Time Magazine Archive

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