atheroma

(ath-e-ro'mah) [G. a there, gruel.] 1. sebaceous cyst. 2. disease of the arteries, consisting in a fatty degeneration of the wall, usually on the site of the lesions of arteritis deformans; this may result in a pultaceous deposit in the arterial wall or in a breaking down of the intima giving rise to an atheromatous ulcer.