Mori H., Matsuda H. (eds.) Cardiovascular Regeneration Therapies Using Tissue Engineering Approaches

Springer, 2005. — 233 p.
The cardiovascular system transports oxygen and nutrients to all parts of the body; therefore, any impediment to this system through, for example, a circulatory disorder, represents a serious threat to organs, tissues, and cells. Obstructive diseases of vessels with a diameter of more than 1 mm can be treated by conventional surgical and interventional approaches; however, blockages in small vessels with a diameter of less than 1 mm cannot be treated by conventional methods. As a consequence, therapeutic angiogenesis and vasculogenesis for the treatment of ischemic diseases have been widely studied in the last decade. These methods may contribute to the repair of intractable cardiovascular diseases with a main vascular involvement in the body's smallest vessels.