title: Real-time tissue elastography for the detection of vulnerable carotid plaques in patients undergoing endarterectomy: a pilot study.
abstract: We examined the utility of ultrasonic real-time tissue elastography (RTE) and conventional B-mode ultrasound (US) in the detection of vulnerable carotid atherosclerotic plaques. This prospective study comprised 19 patients scheduled for carotid endarterectomy. Results obtained from pre-operative RTE and B-mode US and post-operative pathology were compared. RTE encoded low, average and high deformability as blue, green and red, respectively. Tissue hardness was scored on a 5-point scale, and relative strains were calculated. The relative strain was 1.12 ± 0.14 for fibrous plaques (n = 4), 0.28 ± 0.07 for atherosclerotic plaques (n = 5), 0.47 ± 0.31 for intraplaque hemorrhage/thrombosis (n = 5) and 0.98 ± 1.04 for complex plaques (n = 5). The sensitivity, specificity and accuracy of detection of vulnerable plaques were 25%, 100% and 84.2% for B-mode US, 50%, 100% and 89.4% for RTE and 62.5%, 100% and 94.7% for the combination. Ultrasonic RTE is a potential candidate for a non-invasive and effective approach to identify vulnerable atherosclerotic plaques in the carotid artery.
authors.affiliation: Department of Ultrasound, Capital Medical University Affiliated Beijing Anzhen Hospital, Beijing Institute of Heart, Lung and Blood Vessel Diseases, Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Fengju
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Department of Ultrasound, Capital Medical University Affiliated Beijing Anzhen Hospital, Beijing Institute of Heart, Lung and Blood Vessel Diseases, Beijing, China. Electronic address: Yongqiang12234@163.com.
authors.forename: Qiang
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Yong
authors.affiliation: Stroke Center, Capital Medical University Affiliated Beijing Anzhen Hospital, Beijing Institute of Heart, Lung and Blood Vessel Diseases, Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Qinyi
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, China-Japan Friendship Hospital, Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Peng
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, China-Japan Friendship Hospital, Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Yuguang
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Yang
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D016893:Carotid Stenosis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000601:surgery*; D054459:Elasticity Imaging Techniques / Q000379:methods*; D016894:Endarterectomy, Carotid; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010865:Pilot Projects; D058226:Plaque, Atherosclerotic / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000601:surgery*; D011446:Prospective Studies; D016896:Treatment Outcome
keywords: Atherosclerosis; Carotid artery plaque; Elasticity imaging techniques; Elastography; Ultrasound