This cluster of papers focuses on the association between aortic atherosclerosis and various embolic events, including stroke, renal disease, and peripheral arterial embolism. It explores the diagnosis, treatment, and management of cholesterol embolization syndrome, atheroembolic renal disease, and mobile thrombi in the thoracic aorta. The role of anticoagulation therapy and transesophageal echocardiography in assessing aortic plaque morphology and predicting embolic risk is also discussed.