I n the absence of disease, the vasa vasorum nurture the outer component of the vessel wall, and the intima is fed by oxygen diffusion from the lumen.As disease progresses, the intima thickens, and oxygen diffusion is impaired.As a result, vasa become the major source for nutrients to the vessel wall. 1 The vasa vasorum structure consists of a network of small arteries and veins, as shown in Figure 1.In the coronary arteries, vasa originate from bifurcation segments of epicardial vessels; in the ascending aorta, vasa originate from coronary and brachiocephalic arteries; and in the descending thoracic aorta, vasa originate from intercostal, lumbar, and mesenteric arteries.
Moreno et al. (Tue,) studied this question.