Vasculitis is a condition where there is inflammation of the blood vessels in the body. It is very rare.
The term comes from the latin word ‘vasculum’ which refers to the system of blood vessels in the body (which we call ‘the vascular system’) and ‘itis’ meaning inflammation.
There are many different types of Vasculitis and they are classified according to the size of and type of the blood vessels that they affect. These blood vessels include both veins (which return blood to the heart) and arteries (which take blood away from the heart) and capillaries which are the tiny blood vessels interacting directly with the tissues receiving the blood.
The capillaries are the place where oxygen exchange, exchange of nutrients and the transport of cells to and from the vascular system occurs. If the blood supply is affected by Vasculitis, organs in the body can be affected, depending on where the blood vessels are affected and how badly they are affected.
Vasculitis can be very mild, or it can be very serious and life threatening.