Carbohydrate-protein interactions participate in a wide variety of biological and pathological events. In recent years, particular attention has been paid to the carbohydrate-protein interactions that occur in vascular biology. Sialylated oligosaccharides are ligands of a structurally diverse group of proteins that include the selectins and members of the immunoglobulin superfamily. Various glycosaminoglycans can be recognized by an overlapping set of proteins that include two of the selectins and CD44. Emerging knowledge of carbohydrate-protein interactions in human pathophysiology are discussed