Neovaskuläre

Neovaskuläre is the attributive form of the German adjective neovaskulär, meaning relating to or consisting of newly formed blood vessels. It describes processes or structures characterized by neovascularization, the growth of new microvasculature from preexisting vessels. Neovascularization is a normal part of development and wound healing, but it can also occur pathologically in various diseases.

In medicine the term is commonly used to specify tissues, membranes or networks that contain or are formed by new blood vessels. Typical examples include neovaskuläre Membranen or gefäße in the retina (neovaskuläre Retinopathie) and choroidal neovascularization, which plays a central role in neovascular age-related macular degeneration. Similar neovascular processes occur in tumors, where cancer cells stimulate blood vessel growth to support tumor progression, and in ischemic heart disease as part of collateral vessel formation.

Diagnosis and research often rely on imaging and histology to identify neovaskuläre formations. In ophthalmology, fluoreszensangiographie and optical coherence tomography angiography (OCT-A) are used to visualize new vessels in the eye. In clinical practice, management of excessive neovascularization may involve anti-angiogenic therapies that inhibit vascular growth, as well as laser or photodynamic methods in selective cases.

See also angiogenesis, neovascularization, and related conditions such as diabetic retinopathy and age-related macular degeneration.