title: Imaging atherosclerosis and risk of plaque rupture.
abstract: Atherosclerosis imaging strategies can delineate characteristics of plaques at risk of rupture and thrombosis. Structural plaque imaging identifies high-risk plaque features, including lipid pools, thin fibrous caps, and intraplaque hemorrhage. New molecular imaging techniques complement structural imaging approaches by illuminating important features of plaque biology, with a prominent focus on detecting inflammation as a high-risk phenotype. As we unravel the molecular and structural characteristics underlying thrombosis-prone plaques, there is significant promise for eventual early identification and prediction of atherosclerotic plaque complications before they occur. Here we focus on recent imaging insights into high-risk arterial plaques, the etiologic agent of acute myocardial infarction, stroke, and sudden cardiac death.
authors: Cardiology Division, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
authors: Eric A
authors: EA
authors: Osborn
authors: Farouc A
authors: FA
authors: Jaffer
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D050197:Atherosclerosis / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000473:pathology*; D006470:Hemorrhage / Q000150:complications; D006801:Humans; D007249:Inflammation / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis; D058226:Plaque, Atherosclerotic / Q000175:diagnosis; D012307:Risk Factors; D012421:Rupture / Q000150:complications / Q000473:pathology*
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