Background

Many of the clinical manifestations of cardiovascular disease, such as myocardial infarct and stroke are the consequences of underlying diseases, such as atherosclerosis and specific events, such as arterial thrombosis.    However, there is a need for models of these diseases that do not have an underlying cause.

Models

The most commonly used models in these areas are surgically induced acute models of myocardial infarction and cerebrovascular disease (stroke). In these models, vessels are occluded to simulate the effect of a clot, and the effects of ischemia on the heart or the brain are studied.

In addition there are numerous models of congestive heart failure, right and left side, induced by volume or pressure overload, as well as drug induced and MI induced models.