title: Displacement and strain estimation for evaluation of arterial wall stiffness using a familial hypercholesterolemia swine model of atherosclerosis.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To track variations in the deformation of the arterial wall noninvasively by estimating the accumulated displacement and strain over a cardiac cycle may provide useful indicators of vascular health.
  
  
  METHODS
  In this paper, we propose an approach to track a region of interest (ROI) locally and estimate arterial stiffness variation in a familial hypercholesterolemic swine model of spontaneous atherosclerosis that allows for systematic and reproducible study of progression of the disease mechanism.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Strain and displacement indices may be derived from the variations of the accumulated displacement and accumulated strain (obtained from the gradient of the accumulated displacement) over a cardiac cycle to predict not only the likelihood of developing vascular diseases, but also the sites where they may occur. Currently, an ROI thickness value of less than one mm within the arterial wall is necessary for the axial accumulated displacement and strain to obtain reproducible estimates.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Accumulated axial displacement and strain estimation on the artery wall shown in this paper indicate the repeatability of these measurements over several cardiac cycles and over five familial hypercholesterolemic swine. Our results also demonstrate the need for a small region of interest within the arterial walls for accurate and robust estimates of arterial function.
authors: Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53705, USA.
authors: Wenqi
authors: W
authors: Ge
authors: Christian G
authors: CG
authors: Krueger
authors: Ashley
authors: A
authors: Weichmann
authors: Dhanansayan
authors: D
authors: Shanmuganayagam
authors: Tomy
authors: T
authors: Varghese
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002340:Carotid Artery Diseases / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000209:etiology / Q000503:physiopathology*; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D055119:Elastic Modulus; D054459:Elasticity Imaging Techniques / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006938:Hyperlipoproteinemia Type II / Q000150:complications / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000503:physiopathology*; D007090:Image Interpretation, Computer-Assisted / Q000379:methods*; D009038:Motion; D013552:Swine; D013718:Tensile Strength