Table 1.

Triggers of inflammatory response leading to atherosclerosis.

Traditional CV risk factors	low-density lipoprotein cholesterol triglyceride-rich lipoproteins hypertension, smoking, physical inactivity diabetes, obesity
Chronic and acute mental stress	autonomic nervous system
Ageing	bone marrow activation and clonal hematopoiesis
Chronic autoimmune diseases	rheumatoid arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus, psoriasis, inflammatory bowel disease
Chronic infections	periodontitis, bronchitis
Acute infections	urinary tract infections, endotoxins from gut microbiota
Viral infections	influenza, COVID-19 viruses
Tissue injury	myocardial infarction, non-healing skin ulcers

See text for references.