Editing Embolus (section)

== Nomenclature ==
The term embolus refers generally to any free-floating mass in the bloodstream, or such a mass once lodged at a site of blockage. A related term is embolism, which describes the phenomenon of an embolus lodging in a vessel and creating a blockage.<ref name="Robbins&Cotran" /> An embolism is technically a consequence of an embolus, but the terms are sometimes used interchangeably.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Arterial embolism: MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia|url=https://medlineplus.gov/ency/article/001102.htm|access-date=2020-12-09|website=medlineplus.gov|language=en}}</ref> Emboli and embolisms can be named according to their composition (such as [[air embolism]]) or the site where they lodge ([[pulmonary embolism]]).

In contrast to emboli, which can cause occlusion at sites distant from their points of origin, there are also non-traveling blockages that develop locally from vascular trauma and inflammation or other epithelial pathology, such as [[atheroma]]ta and [[Thrombus|thrombi]]. If these local blockages dislodge into circulation, they become emboli and if not broken down during circulation, may cause embolism(s).<ref name=":0" /> For example, a [[thromboembolism]] is the result of a thrombus that has broken off the interior of a blood vessel and caused a vessel blockage elsewhere in the circulation.

Details of embolism classification are discussed below.