What does vasospasm mean?
A vasospasm is a sudden, often temporary contraction of the muscles in the walls of blood vessels. The contraction narrows the vessel and can restrict blood flow, producing effects that depend on where it occurs. Coronary vasospasm may cause chest pain or heart attacks, while cerebral vasospasm after a subarachnoid hemorrhage can reduce blood flow to the brain and cause serious complications. Although vasospasm is related to vasoconstriction, the term more specifically suggests a distinct episode of muscular contraction. The word is most often found in medicine, neurology, and cardiology, but it is also useful in general discussion because it clearly names a sudden and potentially dangerous narrowing of a vessel. The related adjective "vasospastic" is common in expressions such as "vasospastic angina."
nounA sudden, often temporary contraction of the muscular walls of blood vessels, causing a narrowing or closure of the affected vessel. Vasospasm can occur in arteries or veins and may impede blood flow.
- A sudden or temporary contraction of the muscular walls of blood vessels, resulting in narrowing and reduced blood flow.
"The patient was treated with medication to relieve coronary artery vasospasm."
"Coronary vasospasm produced episodes of severe chest pain despite the patient's arteries appearing normal on routine testing."
"Cerebral vasospasm can develop several days after a subarachnoid hemorrhage and requires close monitoring."
Used when referring to multiple separate episodes or instances of vascular spasm.
"Several vasospasms were detected during the angiographic procedure."
Sometimes the body’s narrowest pipes snap shut—that sudden vessel-wall contraction is a vasospasm.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of vasospasm
Vasospasm is a medical compound formed from vas-, meaning "vessel," and spasm, from Greek spasma, meaning "contraction" or "drawing in." Its two elements reflect the original Greek meaning of spasm while the prefix specifies that the affected tissue is in a blood vessel. The same vessel root appears in words such as vascular and vasectomy, while spasm belongs to a family of Greek-derived medical terms including spastic.
Related word forms
How vasospasm is actually used
This is a specialized medical term used mainly in clinical contexts. "Vascular spasm" is a less technical alternative, while "vasospastic" is commonly used as an adjective, as in "vasospastic angina."
Easily confused with vasospasm
Vasospasm is a sudden, often temporary muscular contraction of a vessel, whereas vasoconstriction is the broader process by which vessel diameter decreases and can also be sustained.