Validation study of a semi-automated program for quantification of atherosclerotic burden.
Practical implementation of cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) for the noninvasive screening of atherosclerosis is limited by inter-and intra-observer variability and labor intensity of morphometric analysis by manual planimetry (MANU). We assessed the hypothesis that a semi-automated quantification program (AUTO) for CMR would be faster and more accurate than MANU without loss of reliability. In the analysis of carotid atherosclerosis in asymptomatic hypercholesterolemic patients (n = 17), AUTO was superior to MANU in speed and histopathologic correlation without significant differences in inter-and intra-observer variability. Implementation of AUTO may facilitate CMR for the screening of the burden of atherosclerotic disease.
Choi
Brian G
BG
Cardiovascular Biology Research Laboratory, Zena and Michael A. Wiener Cardiovascular Institute, Mount Sinai School of Medicine, NY, NY 10029, USA.
Novoselsky
Constantin A
CA
Vilahur
Gemma
G
Viles-Gonzalez
Juan F
JF
Zafar
M Urooj
MU
Ibanez
Borja
B
Fuster
Valentin
V
Badimon
Juan J
JJ
D000818:Animals; D050197:Atherosclerosis / Q000473:pathology*; D001331:Automation; D006801:Humans; D007091:Image Processing, Computer-Assisted / Q000379:methods*; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000379:methods*; D015588:Observer Variation; D011817:Rabbits