title: Non-invasive vulnerable plaque imaging: how do we know that treatment works?
abstract: Atherosclerosis is an inflammatory disorder that can evolve into an acute clinical event by plaque development, rupture, and thrombosis. Plaque vulnerability represents the susceptibility of a plaque to rupture and to result in an acute cardiovascular event. Nevertheless, plaque vulnerability is not an established medical diagnosis, but rather an evolving concept that has gained attention to improve risk prediction. The availability of high-resolution imaging modalities has significantly facilitated the possibility of performing in vivo regression studies and documenting serial changes in plaque stability. This review summarizes the currently available non-invasive methods to identify vulnerable plaques and to evaluate the effects of the current cardiovascular treatments on plaque evolution.
authors.affiliation: Cardiology, Department of Advanced Biomedical Sciences, University of Naples 'Federico II', Via Pansini, 5, 80131 Naples, Italy.
authors.forename: Anna
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Sannino
authors.affiliation: Cardiology, Department of Advanced Biomedical Sciences, University of Naples 'Federico II', Via Pansini, 5, 80131 Naples, Italy.
authors.forename: Linda
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Brevetti
authors.affiliation: Cardiology, Department of Advanced Biomedical Sciences, University of Naples 'Federico II', Via Pansini, 5, 80131 Naples, Italy.
authors.forename: Giuseppe
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Giugliano
authors.affiliation: Cardiology, Department of Advanced Biomedical Sciences, University of Naples 'Federico II', Via Pansini, 5, 80131 Naples, Italy.
authors.forename: Fernando
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Scudiero
authors.affiliation: Cardiology, Department of Advanced Biomedical Sciences, University of Naples 'Federico II', Via Pansini, 5, 80131 Naples, Italy.
authors.forename: Evelina
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Toscano
authors.affiliation: Nuclear Medicine, Department of Advanced Biomedical Sciences, University of Naples 'Federico II', Via Pansini, 5, 80131 Naples, Italy.
authors.forename: Ciro
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Mainolfi
authors.affiliation: Nuclear Medicine, Department of Advanced Biomedical Sciences, University of Naples 'Federico II', Via Pansini, 5, 80131 Naples, Italy.
authors.forename: Alberto
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Cuocolo
authors.affiliation: Cardiology, Department of Advanced Biomedical Sciences, University of Naples 'Federico II', Via Pansini, 5, 80131 Naples, Italy.
authors.forename: Cinzia
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Perrino
authors.affiliation: Cardiology, Department of Advanced Biomedical Sciences, University of Naples 'Federico II', Via Pansini, 5, 80131 Naples, Italy.
authors.forename: Eugenio
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Stabile
authors.affiliation: Cardiology, Department of Advanced Biomedical Sciences, University of Naples 'Federico II', Via Pansini, 5, 80131 Naples, Italy.
authors.forename: Bruno
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Trimarco
authors.affiliation: Cardiology, Department of Advanced Biomedical Sciences, University of Naples 'Federico II', Via Pansini, 5, 80131 Naples, Italy espogiov@unina.it.
authors.forename: Giovanni
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Esposito
mesh_terms: D003324:Coronary Artery Disease / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000473:pathology / Q000628:therapy; D003952:Diagnostic Imaging; D006801:Humans; D058226:Plaque, Atherosclerotic / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000473:pathology / Q000628:therapy; D018570:Risk Assessment
keywords: Atherosclerosis; Cardiovascular risk; Cardiovascular treatment; Non-invasive imaging; Vulnerable plaque